The Last Gunslinger Volume 1
by amateurtenor
Summary: Retired Fast Draw Artist, Thai "Tombstone Tim" Magana, better known as The Second Fastest Gun in the West, has made a living as a part-time mechanic in Tokyo, Japan. When the Apocalypse suddenly threw Thai into the fray, he would soon find himself wrapped in a convoluted plot by a mysterious figure.
1. Prologue

Prologue

* * *

I clocked in at 6 in the morning at the garage. Warm black coffee in my hand,I sat down on a desk inside the office before reviewing the orders placed a couple nights before by night crew. We were expecting new parts for the cars inside the shop currently as well as a new 6v71 Supercharger for a Cleveland Engine that was supposed to be installed to a customer who bought one of the boss' cars, a red 1960 Impala Convertible. The car was in excellent condition-you could practically see yourself in the reflection of the polish-but, the only problem was that it didn't have the supercharger.

The order was seemingly late as always and the shop was closed for now. The customer was supposed to arrive in half an hour and I haven't made the finished product for him. The boss couldn't make it today-he had a friend's wedding to attend to back in the States. War Boy's Garage was his idea, one that wanted to give American Muscle to Japanese customers. While we could be somewhat outcompeted by premium Japanese sports cars, many car enthusiasts craved American Cars. We would also fix up any cars or motorcycles that came our way. It wasn't always a high-paying job but it was still enough to allow me to live comfortably in Tokyo, Japan.

I finally received a call on the phone. It was the boss.

"Tim?" A gruff voice came from the phone.

"Yeah, it's me,"I answered. "Hey, we got a problem. Guy's gonna be here in about twenty and the supercharger ain't here."

"Yeah, the guy knows already, but he insisted on meeting you."

"Me? I never even met the guy."

"Well, when I met him to sell the car a few weeks ago, I told him a lot about you and the guys but he seemed more interested in you. Also he's seen you around sometimes. I guess it was because you're, like, the only not-white person there all the time."

"I-I guess, but we're in Japan and I'm Southeast Asian American. That's like a couple islands down South. I can practically pass off as one of them."

"Well that's what probably made him so interested in you. You're the only Asian in War Boy's that works there full-time."

"And yet, I only own an imported Harley. Not exactly the star employee of the store. No, that belongs to your daughter."

Richard let out a hoarse laugh. "Ah don't sweat it. What happened to your Dodge wasn't exactly your fault 're still one of our hardest, and fastest, workers."

I couldn't help but grin, my ego stroked. "You're probably right, man. What's this guy like?"

"Eccentric, to put it lightly. Dude has long flowing silver hair, a weird smile-oh, by the way he isn't Japanese, he's like...European or something."

"European? At least he know's a bit of English, right?"

"Fluent to a tee. He's very cheerful...in a weird way-"

"-is he gay? Does he know I'm taken?"I laughed.

I heard another hoarse laugh through the phone. "I don't think so. He'll most likely try to get all 'buddy-buddy' with ya'. He did for me. Notin' wrong with dat."

The door across the garage opened and two men came out from it. Both had white suits on with a black piece stitched onto the left jacket sleeve just below the shoulder. They wore black shoes and white gloves.

"Hey hold on they're here. I'll catch ya later." I hung up the phone. "Come on in guys!"

When they stepped in the first thing I noticed was their height. I was around 5'9", maybe less, but the customer himself was a few inches taller. The person behind him, a red and black-haired European, was a full 6' tall.

The first person, who I assumed was the customer, had a slender build. The most notable thing about him was that he had long silver hair that went all the way down to his hips. His hair was tied in a long ponytail in the back by a black ribbon. A few bangs on either side of the ear as well as smaller ones above his eyes were also noted. He was smiling a charming, yet creepy smile.

The person behind him was more muscular and larger than the first person, boasting a larger chest and broad shoulders. His maroon bangs were more pronounced than the assumed customer. His darker hair in the back was tied in a long braid behind him that reached around his left shoulder. Unlike the customer, he had an unassuming face of slight confusion.

What caught my eye as I went to shake the customer's hand was their eyes. Their red irises gazed at me, almost catching me off guard. I have never seen anything like it before, but it being Japan, it could be just a colored contact. I decided not to say anything about it, but just seeing them mystified me.

"You must be the guy who bought the car. Name's Thai, but you can call me Tim."

The customer shook my hand, giving me a long smile doing so.

"Hello, Tim-san. I'm Ferid Bathory. Behind me is my friend, Crowley Eusford." Just like I heard from Richard, his tone was bright and cheerful.

I shook Crowley's ungloved hand. "Whoa! You're cold as hell,"I chuckled. "Stuck in a freezer, are we?"

He smiled nervously and agreed.

"Alright Ferid-san, the car is ready. I understand you did all the paperwork and whatnot, you're just here to get the car-" I led the two out of the office and towards the car, "-but, the supercharger we ordered is coming in late. Something about a car being torn in half blockin' the road or somethin' like that. Kids these days with their destructive habits, am I right? All amounts of crazy shit happening recently. Did you know that all the animals at the Ueno Zoo-y'know the one down in Tokyo-they all died overnight! The whole lot of 'em! Poisoned...what a way to go."

"Overnight?"Ferid said, shocked.

"Damnest thing too, they blocked the entire area off. Oh well, what are you gonna do?"

I took the canvas covering the car off to reveal a shiny, red 1960 Impala Convertible. Sharpie lines along the hood of the car already imprinted where to cut to install the supercharger. "Now once it comes, it's gonna probably take around four, maybe five hours for me to install it. If you want I can wipe the lines off and you can take it for a joyride. Honestly, this is, like, the first time anything like this has happened around here."

"I think we'll just wait here." He walked around and wrapped his left arm around my shoulder. "Care to give us a tour~?"

Creepy, yet charming, I considered his request. "Err...I guess. We are technically closed for today. Hold on, lemme grab my coffee."

I showed the two around the garage, from where we store our oil, gas and coolant to where we kept our cars, a separate facility connected to the main garage via a aluminum door. I showed them Haru's Corvette, Mark's Ford F-100, Allison's Ford Model B with a V12 Engine, Michael's 1970 Holden Monaro with a Pontiac front, and Harrison's Volkswagon Beetle with an open-faced V8 engine. They were particularly interested in my own car, the 1972 Ford Mustang Mach 1.

"Where's your car?"Crowley asked.

I sighed softly and shook my head. "Um, a year ago, I might have blown my engine due to some catastrophic failure. Piston ran right through the engine. There was smoke and fire everywhere. Now, I just have that Harley over yonder." I pointed toward the Heritage Softail Classic 2010 parked next to Haru's Corvette.

"That's still a nice bike."Ferid said. He let out a short whistle as he examined it, his hand rubbing his chin.

Flattered, I couldn't help but smile."Well, I'm not complaining about it. It's saved my ass multiple times."

"You're American, right?"

"Yep, born and bred. Straight from the sunny valleys and misty beaches of California. Came over here to study abroad."

"What're you studying?"

"Biology."

There was a mutual silence throughout the garage.

"Yeah-yeah, I know. The hell's a Bio Major working in an Automobile shop for? It's the only work I could get that I knew how to do. You think two and a half years of being in Japan would get you to learn Japanese but I can't figure anything out. Took me a long time to figure out things just by recognition alone. Biology isn't doin' so well for me anyhow."

"What were you doing back home before this?"

"I worked at a burger joint when I wasn't in school. I'll tell ya, the Food Industry sucks..."

"Was that all you did? Work and School? You must've had a boring life. You didn't do anything extracurricular?"

"Nah, I-"

Someone burst through the doorway. He immediately looked at us and walked towards us. I was immediately offset by his general look.

"Hey buddy...uh...how do you say...wareware wa tojite iru...we're closed, sir."

"NO!" He pulled a pistol at me. "All your money! NOW! I WILL KILL YOU"

Ferid and Crowley looked at me.

I looked back at the guy, the hair standing up on the back of my neck. "Sir, I don't know what in the fuck you are doing-"

"-you think I'm kidding! I WILL KILL YOU!"

I growled under my breath; I felt a familiar rush of adrenaline and a shiver down my spine.

"Did you just threaten me?" I asked. "I dare you to say that to my face again."

"I said I-"

Not a second later, the silver hairpin that held my hair together ended up square in his chest. The man dropped his gun and just looked at his chest with a blank expression. He looked at me, the man pale and scared, before falling down on the ground. The two customers beside me looked back at me, shocked at how fast I threw the pin when my hands were still crossed. Finally realizing what I had just done, I groaned and nervously ran my hand through my hair. I nearly killed a guy in self-defense. My heart was beating rapidly and all I could think was about what to do next. The man wriggled on the ground, groaning in pain.

Half an hour later, the three of us were waiting in the office as paramedics took the criminal to the ambulance. The police told me that since I didn't kill the guy and that there was plenty of evidence to accuse the attacker of attacking me, I was right to take him down. I filled out a statement and there would be no need for me to be in the court case. The whole ordeal lasted for two hours. However, they still took the hairpin away from me, saying that it could be mistaken for a dagger.

It was just the three of us again once they left. Just as I stopped another asthma attack with the push of an inhaler, Ferid immediately asked how I did that so fast.

"Ah shit," I still had my hands covering my eyes. "Umm...some guys I would go hunting with taught me how to do Fast Draw. They were professional gunslingers-quickdrawers every one of 'em. Everything from a Colt Peacemaker to the hairpin."

"You learned how to accurately fire a gun in a mere second after grabbing it? Incredible."

I rubbed my left thumb against the side of my left index finger. "It came to me as if it was...innate. Even those guys felt their records were being threatened until I broke 'em all. A uh...college professor measured the speed of my quickdraw and it was something like...0.19 seconds?"

"That fast?"Crowley asked.

"'You're withstanding 10 G's of Force,' he said, or something like that."

"That's amazing! I never knew anyone could do that."

"The fastest person is Howard Darby, with Bob Munden just barely behind me. Are you guys seriously not scaved by what just happened?"

"What do you mean?"they both asked, confused.

"I just nearly killed a guy and y'all are still calm."

"You did handle the situation pretty well." Ferid lightly shook my shoulder.

I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. "If only I had your sense of calmness..."

Ferid started lightly giggling. "Well~"

"Ferid,"Crowley interrupted.

When I looked back, Ferid had his face a few inches next to mine. It was then that I noticed something in his mouth that glinted off of the fluorescent lighting above. I blinked and it wasn't there anymore. Ferid immediately retracted. Just then, the door burst open again. We all turned around; I nearly jumped off of my seat.

"Tii-chan!" It was Haru.

I nervously chuckled, covering my eyes with my hand. "Don't worry everybody. This is Haru, the foreman's right hand man...and also-"

A pair of arms grabbed me and hauled me into Haru's reach. "-a very concerned boyfriend!"Haru said.

"Okay..."I softly said, embarrassed slightly as Haru slightly started straddling me. "I guess you saw through the cams?"

"Ohhh...fufufu. Tim-san has a boyfriend? How delightful,"Ferid smiled. Crowley seemed un-phased.

"Okay, I'm fine, Har,"I muttered, embarrassed.

"Kara is out but she'll talk to you later. Where's your hair pin?"Haru asked.

"Where do you think?"

"Oh...I'm sorry."

Things were getting a little awkwarder as Haru kept pressing me against him. I could feel Ferid and Crowley's eyes staring at me.

"Okay,"I said. "Umm...well, I'm fine, Haru-kun. Don't you need to be back at the Shrine? I'll meet you there after 5."

I could feel Haru's grip tighten. "Are you sure?"Haru said, his tone getting tense.

I quickly thought of something to say. "I'm still waiting on that damn supercharger..."

Haru grunted under his breath. "Hmph. Fine, I'll catch up, okay?"

"Definitely. I'll see you later, okay?"

He quickly kissed my cheek, hinting that there would be hell to pay once I see him again. Haru walked away after, closing the door behind him.

All the time, I could see Ferid smiling uncontrollably as if he really enjoyed watching the two of us interact. Crowley seemed unmoved, but he kept his gaze at me. It looked as if they were watching a soap opera and I was the main star. The quiet atmosphere was too much to bear. I felt embarrassed, but I had to look professional in front of the customers. I dusted off my jacket and decided to turn my attention back to them.

"Sorry about that,"I nervously chuckled. "Concerned boyfriends...and such."

"Awww-Tim-san has a boyfriend!"Ferid chuckled.

"Hey, come on,"I growled. "Don't make fun of me and my boyfriend."

"I wasn't!"he gleefully said. "I just think it's cute that you two can openly express yourselves in front of people."

Shocked, I stuttered my reply. "Well...that was...man, today's a weird day."

* * *

Luckily, the supercharger came in midway through the conversation, It took me a few hours to finish, but the car was ready. I was working so hard that I didn't even notice. Crowley and Ferid walking away for an hour before coming back. I guess they got tired of waiting for me. On the table next to the car, they left a can of beer and a takeout rice bowl next to the toolbox.

"Wow,"I chuckled. "You didn't have ta'."

"Think of it as an apology for creeping you out before. Frie~nds?"

I chuckled. "Well shit, we are now!"

I grabbed the can of beer and joined the two for a toast. Just then, as the cans clunked against each other, something strong just passed my nose. It was heavy in iron and sanguine in essence. I coughed and felt my asthma coming up; the scent caught me off guard as I lowered my can.

"Whew! You guys smell blood?"

"That guy was bleeding all over the floor."

I looked at their cans; I could've sworn it came from what was inside, but I shrugged it off. "Probably. Got 'im good, didn't I? Kempay!"

I took a drink, the uneasy feeling of regret sprouting in my chest. I knew it wouldn't be the last I would hear about that armed robber. There could be lawsuits, people spreading rumors, digging up old dirt...trouble that I didn't need. I finished that long drink with the thought that there was more to come. It was then I noticed the time on the wall; it was nearly noon.

"Oh f-" I nearly spat out my beer.

"What?!"they both asked in unison.

"We gotta go! I was supposed to be outta here by noon. Are you guys cool with that?"

"Sure. Do you have a date to go to?"Ferid asked, nudging me with his elbow.

"Ferid..."Crowley sighed.

"No,"I laughed. "I babysit on days off. Keeps me eating, huh? Alright, well it's been both great and weird...the latter not on your part of course, but nevertheless, an eventful day. Ferid, the car is yours."

I handed Ferid the keys and in a few minutes I turned off the lights and locked the place down. I bowed slightly to the two customers as they drove off before I grabbed the Harley. It wasn't something to behold, but it was better than wasting gas in driving the Lusus Naturae. I hastily navigated around crowded streets and narrow alleyways, looking for my destination. Finally, I found myself in front of a large apartment complex just as the clock struck at 1. I kept muttering tagalog to myself as I hurriedly made my way up to the six or seven flights of stairs before running into the father I was supposed to meet. I bowed to him rapidly, still tired from running up the stairs, before apologizing to him profusely. He simply laughed it off.

"It's okay, Shiho and Mirai are waiting. They are getting good at English."

"Oh wow! Very good. Thank you, Mr. Kimizuki-san."

Shiho and Mirai were the two kids I had been babysitting for the past year. The pay was good, around 1,600 Japanese Yen (or just around 20 US dollars) an hour for around two to four hours per day of babysitting. At first I was content with my usual job in fixing cars and building them, but most, if not all, the money went into college. I was fine babysitting-I babysat four babies and three children when I was in the States-but, when I got to Shiho, he wasn't as content about it as I was. He was rebellious; he wanted me out. However, one day I happened to pass by him as three older kids were ganging up on him, ready to beat him up. I saved him, pushing Shiho back and then shoving the oldest kid away. Those kids ran off, leaving me to take Shiho with me. Still, Shiho didn't like the idea of me helping, until I took him to Kara's private residence in Nagoya an hour later.

Because Shiho's parents needed to coincidentally go out, I decided to take him with me when I was practicing Fast Draw with Kara at her private residence in Nagoya. While I didn't mean for him to watch me, he saw me through the crook of the door as I set up two target balloons ten feet apart before placing myself fifteen feet away from both balloons. In a blink of an eye, I shot both balloons in one single motion before holstering my gun. It wasn't much, but it was a silent bonding moment. He was ultimately impressed and wanted to see more tricks. Since then, I taught him basic English, Math, Science, how to drive (secretly) and how to hold your ground in a fight. Sometimes I would show him a card trick or two. Over time, he softened up. It got to the point where I had to sleep over one night when the parents had a trip to Okinawa.

Today, it was just a usual work day for them. I let Shiho and Mirai do their own thing, leaving myself to read the newspaper and listen to the news on the TV. After half an hour of silent reading, Shiho tugged on my jacket.

"Huh?"I grunted. "Hey there, kiddo. What do you want? Another trick?"I started ruffling through my jacket pockets for my deck of cards.

"Dad said you need to take us to the doctor-"

"-at 2, yeah, I know. Same here, they say this 'flu' is goin' around and I need my shots but I didn't see anyone sick. I'll probably wait on it."

He kept looking at me.

"Something wrong? Lemme guess, you heard a word I said that you didn't understand."

"Your eyes."

"Hmm? Oh, how blue they are?"

"I haven't seen anyone with blue eyes before."

"Well, like I said, everyone is different. For us Asians, eye color is usually brown, but blue eyes are rare. I somehow got stuck with 'em. Makes me unique, no?" I started drinking another coffee.

"U..Unique?"

"Not like anything else. One of a kind." I rose the cup to my lips, taking a sip of coffee.

"Is that why your boyfriend-"

I nearly spat everything back into my cup. "Where did you hear that?"

"I heard you talking to him on the phone yesterday. I thought only girls can have boyfriends?"

"Umm..."I grunted. "Well...oh boy...when someone loves another person, it's usually a boy and girl, right? Like mom and pop."

He nodded yes.

"Well...sometimes...a guy comes to...love another guy and while it may seem strange there is nothing wrong with it."

"Really?"

"What? You're telling me-"

"No!"he said, flustered.

"Look, it's a natural thing, just follow what's right. Stay in school, listen to your parents, and me especially, because I know you're destined for greater things. Just look at me! I'm both a master gunslinger and a college student going into medicine...maybe."

"You really think I will grow up into someone good?"

"Of course! You and your sister. The most important thing is that you two stick together. Right? Family is everything. And...as a bonus-"

I placed my hand behind the back of his head and retracted it, revealing a hidden Ace of Spades.

"-if you need me, I'll be there, guns blazing."

* * *

After painfully getting a shot before returning Shiho and Mirai back home, I met Haru back at the shrine in Yamanashi. I ran up its long stone staircase, heavily breathing to control my asthma, as I finally made it to the red arch. I passed under it, leaning myself over the shrine's well. I caught my breath, trying to stop myself from vomiting all over the place, but suddenly, a wooden stick hit the back of my knees. I groaned in pain as I fell down, my hands still gripping onto the well. It was the Head Shinto Priest wielding a bamboo broom.

"If it isn't the American,"he smiled.

"Seijouro-san! I'd bow, but I'm on the floor."

He helped me up, laughing. "You gave Haru a heart attack!"

"I know-I know...is he here?"

"He's in the garden. Watch out...he's practicing Kenjutsu again."

"Oh boy...arigato."

I made my way towards the garden, going down another staircase towards a small clearing in the hillside. Inside a large clearing of rock stood a beautiful patch of verdant grass circled by numerous cherry blossom trees. The trees themselves already lost all of their flowers, now green with numerous leaves. In the middle of the patch of garden was Haru, wearing a men's kimono and grey hakama. In his hands was a wooden practice sword. He sheathed it as he saw me enter the garden. He smiled softly and lightly shook his hair away from his eyes. My heart fluttered.

I approached Haru. "Haru-kun, sorry I'm-"

He quickly drew his sword and struck me in the gut as I took a step forward. "-Late?"

"Yeah...late,"I winced in pain. "You're getting faster..."

"Almost as fast as you?"Haru stepped behind me.

"Huh?"I chuckled, getting up. "Maybe..."

He struck me again in the back; I dropped to my knees. "Wha-? Why?"I groaned.

"What was that? Sending me out so fast? Don't you love me?"

"I didn't want to make the customers feel uncomfortable,"I said.

"They looked perfectly fine to me,"he pouted.

"Yeah...they were,"I said as Haru helped me up. "Haru, you know I'm gonna be fine. I just...didn't want anyone to feel uncomfortable. You know how people view us sometimes."

Haru sighed softly and lowered his head.

"You know I love you." I moved the bangs from Haru's face.

He dropped the sword and brought me in. He nuzzled the top of my head as he placed his hands around me. I smiled, chuckled, and closed my eyes, embracing his warmth. It was a cold day today, but I was immediately warming up as he brought me down, lightly rolling me around.

"Ha-Haru! You'll get dirty!"I laughed.

"Mmm...are you okay?"

"Wha-What do you mean? Of course I'm okay."

"About earlier today...that man?"Haru looked at me dead in the eye.

I immediately went still, taking in a deep breath. "There's nothing to think about that. I was threatened and I took him down. He was practically askin' fer it."

"Tim-kun-"

"No...he was threatening me and two customers with a pistol! I wasn't gonna let him run off with our money. Our CARS!"

"And you felt no remorse?"

The garden went silent again. I coughed and looked down. I closed my eyes, still seeing the wriggling body of the man on the ground, a stream of blood flowing from the wound where the hairpin was lodged. A tear welled up in my eye; I started to lightly shiver. I could hear sand blowing in the distance and the stomping of boots on barren ground. I couldn't breath, only smelling sand and burning black powder.

"I nearly killed him...I nearly killed him,"I said. "Oh God...what have I done?"

"It's okay. It's over, Tim-kun-"

"-I didn't want to do it-"

"-Tim-kun."

"Oh no...what if he-"

"-TIM!"

He brought my face up to his. My sense of fear and agony was overwhelmed by Haru's stern expression. He stared at me again with his beautiful eyes, once again silencing the garden. His dark reddish brown hair nearly covered his face when the wind came in, but I could still feel his focused gaze. He sighed softly and placed his forehead on mine.

"It's okay. You did the right thing and took him down. I would of done the same thing. You're the fastest-"

"-second fastest."

He sighed softly. "Second fastest Gunslinger in the world. You just saved two clients, the money in War Boy's, and possibly one of our cars, if not, yours! The Police were practically trying to look for this guy for a month!"

"They were?"

"He was in the news. They hinted that they were going to interview you, but Kara was quick to get them to step off."

"Dear God...it was that bad?"

"There's nothing to worry about. He'll be in jail and you'll be a local hero. It won't be like...you know."

I groaned and closed my eyes, hearing a church bell ring at High Noon. "Juarez...Not a day goes by without remembering Juarez. But, you're right." Still with a maudlin tone, I stopped shivering. "I saved two clients. In the end of the day, no one who didn't deserve it got hurt today. I get to live another day...and see the face of my dreams."

Haru returned the kiss. "Are you sure you're okay?"

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes again. I was never good with words, but Haru was always listening to what I had to say, even if he had to pry it out of me. However I couldn't help but contemplate those last words. I was not okay. Two days later, I would find out that the robber died from his wounds, putting a second one under the belt. I feared that this would happen, and the anxiety of it started today. I clutched Haru's arms, but release my grip as I slowly let out another large exhale.

"I'll be fine, for now. Let's just relax for a bit...I need a drink."

* * *

Since that day, Crowley Eusford had been catching me on my days off from both work and babysitting. Including Ferid Bathory, those two shortly became my friends after buying the car from me. Every other week when I would commute from the University towards War Boy's or my own apartment, those two would somehow find me and walk with me. A lot of the times we just went to grab drinks before going to work. After a while it was just Crowley who then wanted to walk with me. Often he would ask me why I would curse so much.

"I mean, it's a bad habit. It just...comes out."

"So, you're just like every other American that comes here to visit?"

"Yeah, pretty much. The guys and I do like to roast each other. It just seems normal in a way."

Today, as we were walking, I decided to show him a new trick. I told him to imagine a card in his mind before telling me the card. Meanwhile, I shuffled a deck of cards in my hands.

"Hmm...Four of Hearts."

"Okay, let me...oh! Oh shit, um...that's awkward I can't seem to find..."

I showed him the fan of cards I made to show him that I couldn't find the card, until-

"-wait! I just remembered! I always keep..."

I put back together the deck and reached into my right pocket to grab-

"-the Four of Hearts. I forgot I always kept a card in my pocket!"

I could see Crowley try and force down a smile.

"That was good, huh? Yeah, the guys back in California got tired of my tricks real quick. Told me to become a magician and not a shooter."

"Do you ever miss home, Tim-kun?"

I snickered and slid the deck back into my pocket. "Every fuckin' day, man. I wish I could go over there for Christmas, say 'hi' to the folks and eat Filipino food again, but Airplane tickets are sold out and air fares are expensive regardless. I can't make it this year. I was gonna Skype them though."

"So what are you going to do?"

"You remember Haru? A little taller than me? Hair almost like yours? Boyfriend?"

"Oh, him?"

"Yeah we've been dating for a while, around a year or so, and because of my predicament, he wants to date me on Christmas Day before taking me out to his Family's celebration."

He chuckled under his breath.

"What's so funny?"

"I still can't believe someone like you could be gay."

I grinned at him. "You okay with it? It's not like I'm putting on women's clothes, talking like a weird accent, and flamboyantly walking like I'm a runway model. Besides, I'm not gay; my boyfriend is."

He snickered, as if he knew what I was talking about. "No, I'm just having a hard time believing a person as dangerous as you harbors such tender and sensitive feelings for the same sex."

"Alright, I'm just gonna assume that means it's okay. I'm hungry. You?"

"No. I just ate before meeting you."

"Alright, cool."

"What's your favorite food, pray tell?"

"My favorite? Well, to be truthful...I love the food here, but nothing beats a good ol' one half-pound American Cheeseburger with Mozzarella cheese, grilled onions and mushrooms, grilled jalapeños and bacon with a side of fries and a tall glass of Coca Cola."

"Sounds...delicious."

"Bro, it is. I usually make one in my apartment a couple times a month."

"Hmm. Do you...wanna come over at my place one day? Maybe after Christmas?"

I guffawed. "You asking me out too? I'm flattered."

"No, I'm not,"he smiled. "But, you are interesting to talk to."

"Thanks. I might just take you up on that offer."

Shinjuku square was lit up with the hundreds of thousands of lights that illuminated off of the countless buildings that surrounded the tightly-packed streets. Cars, motorcycles and buses whizzed past me as I made my way down with the other hundreds of people walking around. The air smelled crisp with the ever-permeating scent of the city sidewalk and cigarette smoke accompanied by car exhaust. As I kept walking my usual fast pace, the breeze continuously cooled down my face. I kept my inhaler close, hoping I wouldn't randomly start choking again.

I was meeting Haru somewhere in the midst of this chaos, our biggest date ever since I first met him in the garage. I was eager to not be late again; I owed Haru for helping me out during the entire time here. I never really could fluently understand the language around me, everything seemed too foreign for me to understand. While there were some signs in pain English as well as the University itself, I never could orient myself to learn it all. Haru sent me the front title of the building, giving me a heading to check.

I enjoyed my entire two and a half years here and I was getting ready for Christmas but before that, I needed to go shopping with Haru. Although I already had a gift for him, I still took him up on his offer to go shopping. Tonight was an exceptionally great night to go walking. I guessed to myself that I was nearing the store. I started picking up my pace so that I could keep him from waiting when all of a sudden a women bumped in to me.

"Oh cr- I'm sorry,"I chuckled.

She started violently coughing before turning to face me.

"Are-are you okay?"I stuttered, gripping her arms.

She started seizuring and suddenly coughed up blood, some getting on my jacket, arms and face. She dropped dead in front of me, the body dropping on the pavement violently. Everyone else looked as shocked as I was.

"Oh my GOD!"I shouted.

Suddenly, people all over started dying the same way. Cars started running in to each other and people were even jumping out of buildings. A motorcycle came running towards me, the driver suddenly dropping out of the seat. I nearly dodged it and landed on someone. I turned around and saw the blank stare of the dead staring back. I screamed and shot back, dropping onto the sidewalk. Everyone around me was dying bloody. I then heard a loud crash in the sky. An airplane suddenly dove into the city just a few miles out. A fiery inferno erupted from the explosion. A gas truck that ran over cars, civilians and everything else, tipped over and released its contents all over the street.

I looked around at all the chaos that happened, unable to process what just happened. Everywhere it seemed as if everyone was dying. Newscasts popped up and all over the world people were dying the same way. The news only turned on for a mere minute before the reporters died as well. My heart raced and I could barely breath. Then I heard it. "TIM-"

"Haru!"

Still clutching onto the gift I had for him, I dashed across the street and broke through the glass wall inside a clothing store. I kept calling out his name, throwing stand after stand of clothes that were in my way. I finally got to the cashier upstairs and saw Haru lying in a pool of coughed up blood. His pupils were nearly dilated and his breathing labored. "Haru!"I cried. I picked him up in my arms and held him closer. He was cold to the touch; he clutched onto me with a weakened grip.

"Tim..."he softly whispered. His hand, cold to the touch, ran across my cheek, wiping the tears from my eyes. "...I'm...sorry."

"No-NO!"I roared. I would probably share his fate but the thought of us dying so soon.

He shoved a box to me. "I...love..." His eyes slowly closed and his breathing slowed to a stop.

"Haru. No...PLEASE!"

I laid my head on top of his, waiting for my own death to come. But, no matter how long I've waited nothing happened. I cried out to God to end me, to let me be with the dead. I hadn't the muster to end myself and just as expected, God didn't listen. Surely everyone I knew died alongside the world. I cried and roared in agony, still clutching the lifeless body of Haru in my arms, the two gifts on top of him. I kept asking myself how this could of happened. Maybe this was a dream? Maybe it-

A crash destroyed my train of thought. I slowly walked outside, still with Haru in my arms, to see a desolate wasteland before me. The sky filled up with black smoke and flame. The buildings were all but destroyed. Bodies littered the streets along with destroyed cars, buses, plane parts and with more fire covering it all.

"What happened?...how could have this happened all so fast?"I asked myself, paralyzed with fear.

Suddenly, two hooded people came into view. I couldn't make out their faces but the cloaks they wore gave off a weird vibe. No matter, I was too frightened to just stand there anymore.

"I-I need some HELP!"I cried out. "PLEASE!"

They turned to each other and started talking. Although a while away, I could still make out their conversations. "An adult human still alive? I thought it was just children?"

Adult human?

Children?

"I-I need some help!" I repeated. "Please!?"

They came closer just as I heard an announcement out of nowhere, like it came out of a PA system hooked up to the entire city. I looked up, trying to find the source of the noise. The announcement overpowered the destruction around me.

[This is a warning. Due to foolish humans, a virus has spread. Unfortunately, the human race will perish. However, we know that the virus does not affect children thirteen and younger. Therefore, we, the direct unit of the Third Progenitor, Krul Tepes, will start the protection of children in this district.]

I looked back at the hooded figures, stepping slightly back. They came closer and their faces were revealed. Pale faces, blood red eyes and fangs. I couldn't believe it-they were vampires. I started hyperventilating, wanting to run but unable to move.

"N-now wait a minute,"I muttered, backing up as I did so, "L-let's not get too irrational."

"Calm down and come with us human,"one of them said.

"I ain't goin' anywhere,"I roared. "I just been through ten minutes of this goddamn virus and you guys said I'm go'n die. I am NOT IN THE CALMING DOWN MOOD GODDAMMIT!"

They looked at each other and one of them grabbed a sword from underneath his cloak. "Last chance, human. Surrender or die."

I felt a familiar chill run down my spine. It wasn't fear; I already felt fear inside of me. This feeling was something else. It was a chill that ran through my entire body. My breathing slowed and my heart slowly went back to normally beating. I slowly laid Haru down onto the ground. I looked at his motionless body once before turning to face the two vampires. My breathing calmed and my hands remained at my side. "Alright,"I said. "I'll give." The two looked at each other and the unarmed one walked closer to me.

As if on instinct, I reached behind my back and threw out a Ruger Redhawk 5033 and fired two shots. Both struck the two men in the chest, throwing them onto the ground. I quickly ran over and fired two more shots into both their heads. All that was left was a bloody mess until for some reason their bodies combusted into flame and ash. "What-?" I suddenly felt fear rush through my body yet again as I dropped my gun. Although old habits die hard, I presumed I was just lucky that I illegally had a gun on me in Japan. However, I wasn't focused on that; those two bodies just disappeared. Were they really vampires?

The fire grew and the smoke started filling my lungs. I grabbed my gun and started reloading it with the last six bullets I had on me. No doubt others heard the shots and I had to get out of here fast. I saw a motorcycle, still intact and ready to be used. I looked back at Haru's body, still lifeless and dead. More tears grew from my eyes as I couldn't help but keep staring at him.

I suddenly heard the marching of boots advance towards me. I looked behind me and saw an army approaching me. I muttered a curse as I grabbed the gun and frantically ran towards the bike. I looked back at Haru's body again. Covered in his own blood, his body laid on the smoldering rubble of the building. The light of the flames glowed off of him, giving me one last good look at him. More tears started streaming down my face; I wanted to go back for him. However, it was too late. The army was coming and I had to move.

Beside me, I heard and saw the world end around me. The day after tonight, I woke up to a dead world haunted by monsters.


	2. The Man on the Steel Horse

The Man on the Steel Horse

* * *

I broke into yet another apartment building. At this point after a year and a half of hiding since the Great Blaze, I was finally exploring more of the outside of Tokyo's borders in search of supplies that I desperately needed. Inside, I scavenged enough canned food for a week, a few water bottles, and a new knife. No ammo for the recently-found hunting rifle, the 1911, or my illegal revolver.

I stuck closer to the buildings when running back to the garage at War Boy's. Giant monsters prowled the wasteland, hungry for any human caught dead in their tracks. If that wasn't enough, vampires apparently existed as well. Coming out only at night, I encountered a lone vampire when I found the rifle. His face was pale white and his eyes-those blood red eyes-glared at me with ferocious hunger. They were militarized; he wore a white uniform with a white cloak and black thigh-high boots, far different than the darker cloaks that the others wore during the Great Blaze. He wore a sword over his left hip.

We stood glaring at each other for a long minute, trying to see if the other one flinched. I barely had enough time to take him down. He was faster than a speeding bullet; he nearly sliced me in half with a longsword but a rifle bullet got to his chest first. He kept coming at me though, a .22 not being able to take him down, but I took him down after three shots, realizing that a headshot finally stunned him. I grabbed a sledgehammer and brought it down on his head, destroying it. He disappeared in a cloud of burnt ash just as I left, knowing that more would soon come. Already, I heard the stomping of the giant monsters closing in on my location. There was no way anything I had could even hurt the monsters that hunted me down that night.

I returned to the garage, the safest place I found ever since my old apartment was broken into. Every car was gone, most likely still in their resting places when the Great Blaze ate half of the city. Luckily, my Harley stayed behind, intact and still road-worthy. With somewhat decent gas mileage, and the fact that I couldn't find a working car anywhere, I decided to try my luck in escaping the city.

If I truly was the last human remaining that wasn't an eight-year old running around like it was a Mad Max movie, I knew the vampires would be looking for me. I holstered my Ruger and 1911, slinging my rifle over my shoulder. Inside my head, I was running calculations on time, fuel usage, predicted weather conditions, and guaranteed roadblocks as I packed the motorcycle's saddlebags with however much I could carry on me. I tied anything extra with rope and chain before covering it with a blanket.

I looked around, setting a map on a nearby table. The destination of my escape was a lot farther than most could manage with such low supplies: Nagoya. Richard's daughter, Kara, was a JSDF officer who had a home for herself near town hall, a frequently visited place by yours truly. Knowing it to be a reasonable place to hole up and defend, it was a viable option as an escape from a city crawling with vampires and monsters.

I studied the map carefully, noting a main route and any sub-routes and detours along the way if the main route was blocked. It was going to be a hell of a shot, but I knew it was going to be worthwhile.

I hopped back on the motorcycle, stuffing the map inside my jacket pocket. However, just as I was ready to start the ignition, I heard a knocking behind me. I spun around, nearly falling off of my bike, my hand twirling out the revolver on my hip. I looked around, scared out of my mind as I heard the sound of metal clanging in the dark shadows of what used to be a proud garage. I stepped out, keeping my revolver trained at the dark.

"Who's there!"I nervously said. "Hullo?"

Something darted out. I screamed and nearly shot my gun, until I realized it was just a stray cat that hopped at a mouse on the floor. I sighed angrily and stomped the ground with my boot, causing the black-furred feline to jump back into the shadows.

"Damn cat...I should shoot you,"I muttered.

I holstered my gun and jumped back on my motorcycle, starting it before taking it outside of the garage. Before leaving, I took one last look inside, sighing from the fact that it would probably be the last time I see the garage. I hated to see it in such ruin, but frankly, it was just another building to me. I nodded to it, still remembering the many experiences I had in it, before driving on out of there upon hearing the distant rumbling of monsters.

I kept driving, never looking behind me. The sun was still high up, meaning that the vampires were unlikely to rear their ugly heads. All I had to worry about were the monsters, but they were easy enough to spot out.

What wasn't easy to spot out was a jeep that nearly ran me over as it sped across and intersection as I entered it. I roared, jerking the motorcycle to the left as the vehicle shot to my right, barely missing it, but not being able to stop in time from crashing into another car. I was thrown off, luckily landing on my saddlebag that was thrown off.

Both sharp and blunt pain searing through my back, legs, and arms, I laid there for a second as I tried to comprehend what just happened. I groaned and slowly got up, still in pain, as I saw the jeep slowly park just a few meters away from me. I held my back with my right hand, still somewhat bent over and beaten as the occupants of the vehicle got out. I was even more in pain as I saw who they were.

Vampires.

At first they stood there, examining me as I slowly stood up straight, my knee feeling the most pain. Suddenly, they unsheathed their swords and pointed their tips at my throat. I put my hands up, my heart and breathing accelerating due to the rush of adrenaline and fear.

"You, human. Give up your weapons."

There was no way I could quickly draw my revolver without dying. "Fine."

I slowly undid my belt and tossed over the holstered revolver and my knife. One of the two vampires grabbed it and the other approached me. "What about that?"

He was referring to the lump on my jacket, his sword barely touching it; an idea suddenly popped in my head. It was going to be one hell of a shot, but if it worked, I saw a possibility to get out in one piece.

"Oh? Those are my cards." With my left hand still up, I cautiously picked out a nearly complete deck of playing cards from my jacket pocket. "Gentlemen, I believe we all got off on the wrong foot here. Please, before you kill me, or do whatever it is you plan to do with me, allow me to show you just one last card trick. Magic was my favorite hobby."

They looked annoyed. "A magic trick? Are you serious?"

"You already have me at sword point,"I said as I rolled up my sleeves. "What have you got to lose? It's a waste of time, I know, but it will be quick and fun, I promise. After this...you...can do what you want with me."

They looked at each other; I could sense no emotion from them, . "Fine, but make it quick."

I fanned out the deck in front of them. "No problem, sir. Just pick a card. Any card. Commit that card into memory."

One of them grabbed a card.

"Now push it anywhere in the deck. Sir in the back, keep your sword trained on me and keep in mind you can see both my hands."

The card-bearer pushed his card into the middle of the deck.

"Alright, I'm gonna do a few cuts, a shuffle here...and there...so now there is no possible way I can know what your card is. However..."

I picked up the card from the top of the newly formed deck.

"Is this your card?"

They looked at it. "That is not my card. Quit wasting our time!"

One of them grew closer and smacked the deck away from my hand. The other went to grab for my throat.

"Whoa-whoa-whoa, guys-"I said, backing up. "Now, I'm all down for you to drain me but sadly, you didn't let me finish."

With a flick of the wrist, a card popped out of my hand.

"Your card was the King of Diamonds, now wasn't it?" I showed them the card.

They looked at each other, lowering their swords.

"That was-"

I drew my 1911 and fired two rounds into both of their heads when they were distracted. I quickly ran up to the vampire with my revolver and grabbed it, firing an extra shot into their heads, killing them. They vaporized in a cloud of smoke, leaving behind traces of their white uniforms. The shots rang out through the buildings. The road became silent.

I gasped for air and nearly fell down; I was so close to dying. I started coughing, dropping down to my hands and knees, the start of yet another asthma attack. Trying to slow down my breathing, I started taking deep and long breaths to calm myself down, more pain sprouting down my legs and back. When I managed to calm down, I hurriedly grabbed my gun belt and wiped my face with a rag, still woozy from the heavy breathing. Even though my back and legs were still sore, I needed to get moving.

There were probably more vampires to come, so I decided to salvage what I can and get back to driving. A hose was inserted into the jeep's gas tank, the other end inside a half-empty jerry can. Checking the jeep, there was nothing of use; I was expecting to find at least a few lone rifle rounds or even a rifle. I looked inside my revolver cylinder. There were only two more rounds left; I loaded the last of my ammo in the cylinder to fill it. I ran out on the hunting rifle and the 1911 had two clips left.

Suddenly, I heard the roar of jeeps behind me from across the street. I muttered a curse before running over to the jerry can. It was too late; another military jeep came driving over to my location. I quickly ducked behind the salvaged jeep and rolled into the derelict building.

Hiding on top of the rafters of the building, I held my breath as I heard the stepping of boots come closer and closer. Two people walked inside, not noticing how I was above them.

They were different; they almost looked human. In fact, I was pretty sure they were human. It didn't make sense-they looked older than the suggested 13-year old cap off age for the virus. They looked to be around the ages of nineteen, maybe. They wore black military uniforms, as opposed to the vampires' white uniforms and cloaks. One of them also had a katana on them while the other didn't appear to have any weapon. They seemed to be conversing with each other in Japanese instead of Latin or English.

I could already hear a voice in my head saying that it seemed that I "wasn't the last human on Earth." A feeling of joy hit me-I smiled just seeing them-but I then remembered that survivors of an Apocalypse can have mixed feelings about other survivors. They could be a Cult. The language barrier alone could mess with my good intentions. I looked to my right and saw a dangling cord. Time to make an entrance.

I grabbed enough cord to throw over the unarmed soldier and lasso her up towards the rafters, using her as a counter-weight as I made a slow descent down. The wire wrapped around her arms and trapped her, leaving me with the other soldier. I had my revolver trained on him and the girl just as the man unsheathed his katana.

"Drop it,"I ordered, pointing to the katana.

He looked at the girl, who was struggling to get free, before throwing the sword at my feet.

I kicked it to the next room.

"English?"I resorted to only a few words.

"Yes."

"Who are you?"

"Calm down, sir. You don't have to point your gun at me."

More people appeared outside the doorway. Shocked, they took out their own weapons. Some were conventional, some were wielding katanas and bows, but others had weapons that seemed unconventional to me if they were going to fight a vampire. One soldier, a red-haired girl, wielded large gauntlets that wrapped around her fist and forearm. Another had what looked like a large smoking pipe embroidered in gold. None of them had any firearms, but they looked ready to pounce.

I stopped the first soldier from getting any closer. "Hold it,"I ordered. "Are you the leader?"

"Yes."

"Who are you?" I tried steadying my pistol, making sure they don't notice the fear running through me still.

"I am Lieutenant Colonel Guren Ichinose-"

"LTC? JSDF?" It could be them.

"No, but we are here to save what's left of humanity."

I softly bit my lip, pondering what my next course of action was. True, they didn't look like a scavenger or wastelander from the movies, instead wearing official-looking uniforms, but it all looked too good to be true. First, I get attacked by vampires, and just as I save myself, this mysterious bunch of soldiers appear with the same jeeps as the vampires.

With another plan in mind, I de-cocked my revolver and twirled it into my holster, letting go of the captured soldier. She fell on her feet as I backed away even more.

"Okay,"I softly said. "So, you're here to save whatever is left of humanity. No catch?"

The LTC was a lot younger than me, but his glare told me that there was more to him than he was letting on.

"There's no need to be defensive,"said the other man with the pipe. "Just come with us."

He suddenly lurched forward; my hand reached for my revolver, stopping him dead in his tracks. "Er...you know what, I'm still a little sore from falling off my bike. Mind if I grab a Tylenol from the saddlebag?"

The four soldiers around me looked at each other. "Fine, but be quick,"the LTC said.

Cautiously, I stepped out of the building, noticing how they were accompanied by around a dozen other soldiers. They all carried katanas over their left hips with no guns in sight. Well, that was a lie. A white-haired soldier, the same age as the young LTC, held with him a black rifle that looked like some sort of WWII Bolt Action Rifle. He held the barrel down as I passed him, his vigilant eyes locked with mine.

I examined my bike, picking it back up before resting it on its jiffy stand. It was banged up, but thankfully still functional. I draped back the saddlebags, making sure I had everything before slinging my empty rifle over my back. Now was the time to put my plan into action.

I didn't trust these kids, no matter how well prepared they seemed. It looked too good to be true. However, that wasn't cause to just shoot them-that would make me a monster.

"Did you do that?"the LTC asked, stepping over next to me as I half-mounted my motorcycle. He was referring to the carnage I left behind.

"Yeah. There was an ambush. Luckily, I distracted them long enough to pull my 1911 and take 'em down."

"How many?"he asked shocked, the rest of the onlookers eyes widening.

"Two."

He was shocked, to say the least, but then a smile appeared on his face. "You're pretty skilled with a gun, I guess?"

"Hm. Five time WFDA champion, second only to Howard Darby. Called me 'the new Billy the Kid' on account that I was the youngest out of all the shooters."

"Really? Interesting story."

"Yeah-" I might have let out more than I wanted to.

"We could use experienced fighters such as yourself. How good are you?"

"You wanna see a trick? I'll show you how fast I can pull a gun."

He stayed silent, his look of awe turning into that of suspicion. I kept a smile plastered on my face.

"Here-" I cautiously took out my revolver, releasing the cylinder to let all the bullets drop on my other hand. "Empty cylinder." I holstered the revolver and pocketed the bullets. "I bet a now-useless hundred dollar bill that I can draw and dry-fire my gun faster than you can take out your sword. Ready?"

"Okay." He was luckily in a safe distance, his gloved hand wrapped around his sword.

"Say when."

"Okay...now!"

I flung out my revolver and dry-fired it faster than Guren, which was an obvious prediction. But, what no one knew, other than me, was that my left hand also grabbed my hidden 1911 and fired it at the gas canister that I had previously filled up. The resulting explosion caused everyone to duck and cover, giving me enough time to kick up my stand and start the motorcycle up. I bolted out faster than they could recover, not even caring so much as to look back. All I knew was that thankfully no one was near the canister as it exploded.

The only regret I had was that I had to use an entire gas canister to escape. Still, I was never one to join any groups, even if what they said was true, which I knew for a fact was bullshit. It was just another ploy by the vampires to flush me out of hiding. I showed them.

* * *

By nightfall, I was out of Tokyo and into Yamanashi Prefecture. I already knew this outcome of the trip, due to the excessive detours caused by fallen buildings, broken highways and packs of monsters, but now the danger of vampires have grown nearly 300%. The only place close enough now to have a rest was-

"Kurosawa Temple...sonuvabitch..."

The red arch leading to the temple grounds loomed over me, the bright white moon right above it. Due to the staircase, I hid it inside of a storehouse located under the temple, bringing up my saddlebags with me. I cautiously looked around at the vacant buildings, unable to see anything in the dark. Come to think of it, I couldn't see anything other than the arch.

I opted not to use a flashlight, instead cautiously stepping towards the closest building-the Main Office. With the saddlebags wrapped over my shoulder, I wiggled the door handle, noticing it was locked. I cursed and stupidly broke the door down, unable to keep the noise down. I just hoped nothing was around me to notice.

I walked inside, dropping the bags before pushing a nearby cabinet over the closed door. It was pitch black inside, now being the optimal time to use a flashlight, knowing nothing can be inside. I reached inside, grabbing the metal flashlight before turning it on. Everything was thrown on the ground, presumably due to the earthquakes caused by the gas lines all rupturing from the Great Blaze.

"What a shame,"I said to myself.

The light then shone off of a broken framed picture on the wooden ground. Immediately knowing what it was, I scooped it up, careful not to cut myself from the falling glass. I sighed softly, seeing a younger me next to Haru. I was holding up my WFDA award and Haru his silver medal.

"I'm sorry, Haru."

A tear dropped from my eye and onto the photo, a dark spot growing on the paper. I stuffed the photo in my jacket pocket before looking around. I cleared my throat, wiping the tears with my free hand as I carefully examined each room. Luckily, there was one with a futon. I looked around more, going to Seijouro's office. I was thankful to see that he had a mini-fridge. I looked inside, seeing a few plastic bottles of water. Even though it hadn't been running, the water was still good. I downed a bottle before going back to my saddlebags, bringing them with me to the futon, where I laid myself to rest.


	3. A Blast from the Past

A Blast from the Past

* * *

Rays of sunlight peeked through the shades, flooding the room with a mellow light. I woke when one of those rays hit my eye. I groaned and slowly rubbed my eyes open, shifting my head over to the shade. It was probably one of the better night sleeps I had had in a while.

I looked around, now seeing the room in its entirety. Nothing really much was in here, other than books, worthless electronic devices, and not a whole lot else. After eating what little food I had, I decided to carefully check the remaining area for any supplies that could still linger around. I checked the next room over, yet another familiar sight as this was the room Haru frequented. The first thing I saw was a familiar bokken. I picked it up, feeling the polished wood handle, the fair weight distribution. I wasn't much of a sword fighter myself.

Looking around, I grabbed a few water bottles, a set of throwing knives, and Haru's tanto. I chuckled upon seeing it. Like me at my house back home, I could never resist hiding weapons all over my residence. I threw these in the saddlebags, looking around again as I went towards the exit. As much as I would have loved to stay, ghosts would haunt me with every minute.

I coughed as I exited the building, pushing back the cabinets that thankfully stayed still throughout the night. I looked around the ruined tempe buildings, the monsters unable to be found. I sighed, still coughing vehemently as I trudged towards the center. Then, it became worse.

"Fuck,"I coughed.

I dropped the saddlebags and leaned myself against the well, coughing violently.

"Not...now..."

My chest felt tight, every breath becoming shorter and shorter. I dropped to the ground on all fours. I crawled towards my saddlebags, reaching for the only home cure I knew would somewhat work: soda. I desperately reached for my bag, my fingers digging deep inside the bag for the plastic bottle.

I couldn't find it. My breath was shortening, my coughs becoming wheezes. Suddenly, I heard the faint sounds of a pair of boots hitting the ground. I rolled on my back and tried breathing deeper breaths. Someone was coming, but who?

I couldn't see, but the person who just came started digging through my bag. He was talking to himself, or me, his voice somewhat familiar. However-

"Here."

The man rolled a bottle to my hand. I quickly raised it up to my mouth, tearing open the cap before pouring the drink into my mouth. A lot of it spilled across my face, but it worked. The caffeine helped open up my throat. I coughed out the excess in my throat, spitting out onto the stone pathway as I rolled back onto my stomach.

Who just helped me? I looked up to see a towel suddenly cover my face. I reluctantly took it and wiped my face and hands, thinking it to be Guren, if he followed me here. I tossed the towel, the first thing I saw being a gloved hand. I took it, the mystery person helping me up. As I saw his face, my eyes widened. I got up, my gaze still locked with the man's.

"You? No...it can't be,"I awed. "Crowley Eusford?"

"I thought I recognized that motorcycle you hid downstairs,"he simply said.

I caught my breath, hoarsely chuckling as I came in for a hug. I would have never thought that during my time of need, Crowley would be the one to actually save me from dying. I was laughing in tears in his jacket.

"Okay-okay, that's enough,"Crowley said, pushing himself off of me. His hands stayed clutched to my shoulder. I wiped my eyes.

"Man, am I ever glad to see you,"I smiled. "I thought I was a goner."

"Yeah...you're actually alive?"

I scoffed. "Of course I'm alive, ya' big dummy. " I lightly punched him on his sleeved right shoulder. "Whoo...looks like I'm not the only adult runnin' around here. We got mobs of kids with katanas and shit, and there's me being tactical."

"Mobs of kids with katanas?"

"I-I'll tell ya' later, it's not important. They're just gonna get themselves killed. One of them does have a rifle though, a make-you-jealous lookin' rifle."

"Interesting."

I looked at Crowley too, his garb all fancy and white with a black arm sleeve over his right arm. A purple half-cape laid over his left arm. Something about it didn't seem quite right. How was it that the only survivors I saw were wearing military-like uniforms?

"What-what's with all this fancy garb. You almost look like a-"

"Vampire?" He leaned on his right leg, putting his right hand on his right hip and smirking at me.

"Yeah. Y-you actually fit the part. See? You got yer...uh..."

Red eyes.

Pointed ears.

Fangs that glinted off the light.

A giant sword strapped to his left hip.

I then remembered seeing him for the first time. He didn't even so much as hide the eyes and ears. What a dangerous coincidence this was, especially with the times we were unfortunate enough to find ourselves in.

A cold shiver jolted through my spine.

"Er...remember that time I treated you and Ferid out for dinner at that fancy five star Wagyu place, but then y'all ain't even eat anything so we just stayed at the pier talking about stuff,"I said.

"Yeah."

"Uh...oh boy..." I scratched the back of my neck as I slowly stepped back. "Well...I said that you two were probably the, uh, best friends, other than Haru, I had on this wonderful archipelago."

He laughed as he stepped forward. "Then why are you walking away from me?"

I cleared my throat as my heart started beating faster, fear coursing through me. "Oh, no reason. I feel like we could all do with some personal space right about now. Allow time to breathe."

"Hm. To be honest, I didn't think you of all people would still be alive. What a treat to find you lying here at your boyfriend's temple. Is he alive, too?"

He tugged on a heartstring. "Now that's just low, even for you, Crowley,"I growled with a smile. "How 'bout we just talk this out like civilized folk."

"The last time you did that, a poor human got struck with a hairpin."

I coughed. "That too? Low blows, is it?"

I then bumped into what felt like another body. I slowly turned my head around to see two women behind me, each wearing distinct uniforms and carrying weapons. I turned my entire body around, the three vampires now in front of me.

"Oh...you got friends,"I nervously smiled. "Morning." I gave them a slight nod.

"Crowley-sama,"called out one of them, a blue-haired vampire with a saber. "Do you know him?"

"Hm? Oh yeah, remember that Gunman I was talking to you about? The one with the hairpin?"Crowley said as if I wasn't here.

"That's him?"said the other, a blonde-haired vampire with a whip. "He seems...unimpressive."

"Hey, now,"I said. "Let's not forget I'm here."

"We see you, human."

"Okay, well, now that we all see each other now, I think we should all calm down now."

Her red eyes pointed toward my holstered revolver.

"Armed?"

"Oh, bloody hell..."I muttered.

Before I could even react, her whip wrapped itself around my torso and arms. I shouted in surprise as she swung me across the temple grounds, colliding me with the wooden walls of the office building. I broke through the wall, splintered wood all around me as I crashed onto the ground. Luckily, through the pain, I didn't break any bones. However, I was hurting all over, unable to get back up as the whip slithered off of me.

"Crowley..."I called out weakly. "Call off your guards!"

Crowley stepped over, a smile plastered across his face.

"Please...Crowley, we're friends!"

"I know,"he said. "That's why I helped you out with that fit of yours."

"Then why'd she throw me across a wall!?"

Crowley knelt beside me, his aides poking their heads out from behind his back. "To break your guns."

"Break my-"

I looked down, the Ruger's butt broken clear off along with its hammer, the 1911 also in pieces under me, rendering both useless. I groaned, letting my head rest on the broken ground, closing my eyes.

"Now, we can talk like 'civilized folk,'"Crowley said, patting my head.

"Why'd you even hang out with me in the first place? Before all of this. You could have been like Ferid and shove off, but you continued to stay friends with me. Don't tell me you were stalking me as if I was some sheep."

"Hm...well, mostly because you were a different sort of person than I have ever encountered. You weren't incredibly boring, but I did like the stories about you in those Cowboy Shooting Competitions."

"Err...I'll take it."

Crowley offered me a hand, to which I reluctantly took. He slowly helped me up, supporting my back with his free hand before standing me up. I was aching all over, bits of gunmetal dropping from my rig. I sighed and took off the broken guns.

"You didn't have to do that,"I muttered in pain.

"I wanted to be sure you wouldn't shoot me. You're lucky that I already had my fill before I heard you coughing from down the hill."

"Fill? Fill of what?"

He just stared at me, the answer coming to me in just a few seconds.

"Jesus, Crowley. You really are a vampire. You and Ferid, huh?"

"Yep. Pretty much. How long have you been staying here?"

"I just got here last night. I was in Tokyo for the entire time. Decided to try my luck in Nagoya at Kara's. She had guns, supplies, and a wall."

"Oh, Nagoya? That's interesting. I rule there."

"Is that a fact? What are you doin' out here, besides throwin' me into a building."

"Hunting. You're my big catch for the day."

"Oh...well, what now?"

Sooner than I knew, I was handcuffed, wrapped around in chain and rope. My saddlebags and motorcycle were confiscated, the two vampires, Chess and Horn, hauling me off towards a helicopter that apparently stood a fair distance away from the temple.

"God DAMMIT, Crowley Eusford!"I roared back, the vampire merely smiling and waving me goodbye. "Don't you do this to me! Don't you friggin' do this to me! I did nothin' but be nice to you for an entire year! Don't you friggin' make me into a blood bag! For fuck's sake, you bi-colored haired-eats nothin' in a fancy five star restaurant-clueless-looking-ass muthafu-!"

Chess shoved a rag into my mouth before kneeing me in the gut. I groaned out in pain as she tugged my head up forcibly.

"Shut up already,"she said.

"Americans,"Horn chided.

* * *

"Are you sure about this, Crowley-sama?"Chess asked, the two aides returning to their master as the helicopter took off. Crowley could still see the wild eyes of the Gunslinger peering through the small circular windows.

"If what you said is true about him, then he could be more troublesome than any of the livestock,"Horn added.

"That's now Ferid's concern,"Crowley smiled, waving the entire thing off. "Still, I'll check up on my old friend from time to time. Ferid's going to have a lot of fun with a new mechanic to work on his cars."

"How do you think he survived?"Chess asked. "Kind of odd that you two would meet each other again."

"Not really."

"Hm?"

"Ferid let loose that he made sure that Thai would survive the Apocalypse. However, he didn't take into account on how crafty Thai was in evading capture for over a year."

"He purposefully immunized him to the virus? Why?"Horn asked.

Crowley stayed silent for this part. As the helicopter disappeared into the blue sky, past memories of Crowley meeting Ferid for the first time popped into his mind. He remembered that Ferid went after him for a reason, and now he was after Thai.

"Just what are you planning to do with him, Ferid Bathory?"

* * *

"Ohayō, Thai-kun!"Ferid greeted.

Two vampires dragged me out, Ferid being the one to greet me. I tried cursing him out, but the rag in my mouth stopped me from saying audible words.

"Mfhhrrrm hhhfrrr!"

"What's that~? You want to live with me forever? Good boy!"

He playfully patted me on the head, making me seethe with anger. I roared out, until one of the vampires punched me in the gut. Blood pooled from the rag, Ferid catching a drop on his finger before licking it.

"Relax. You should learn to have better manners with your new masters."

I hissed under my breath, my jaws clamping down on the rag with sheer anger.

"I'll remove the rag, but promise to not be angry or curse. De~al?"

I had a creative answer for Ferid's proposal, but I don't think I could take another gut punch by the bastards holding me. I sighed and nodded.

Ferid smirked, taking out the rag ball from my mouth.

"Better?"he asked.

"I was...a couple hours ago. So, you and Crowley were vamps long before this? I should've known those eyes and ears weren't fake."

"Like them?"

"No." I hated being in this position.

Ferid smirked. "You could use a little work yourself."

I shook my head. "What the hell is that supposed the mean?"

Without another thought, I was dragged behind a strutting Ferid, the vampire leading me towards an unknown destination. However, that destination loomed over us with every step, casting a magnificent white glow in such a dark and gloomy cavern I found myself in. Its tall white pillars held up a massive structure, a lush garden surrounded by a dark fence with a fountain centerpiece. Ferid had a mansion inside of this giant cavern.

"A mansion?"I asked, the two vampires finally letting go of me, albeit in the form of throwing me on the ground.

"Yep. One of seven."

"Seven!?"

Ferid picked me up and led me inside the gates, the first sight being-

"Why are there children running so carelessly around yer garden?"

"Hm? Oh! They're just children."

I thought about it for a moment. "Oh, God..."I groaned in disgust.

"What?"

Anxiety crept through my spine. "Ferid...remember that time-"

"That you took me to that five star Wagyu restaurant, but I didn't eat anything, so afterwards we talked about life in the pier for the entire night? Yes, I do remember that night. You called us the 'best friends you had, other than Haru, on this archipelago.'"

"...yeah, it went something like that."

"Fu-fu-fu. Relax. It's illegal to directly drink the blood from a human when down here."

I didn't know wether to be glad, or still concerned due to my capture. "Fair enough. It is a nice place. What did you mean that I needed a little work?"

Ferid led me to a brightly lit room, surrounded by giant shelves chock full of books, tomes, ledgers, and any amount of printed word on paper. I awed at the immense size of the room, only to be thrown back onto a chair. A white sheet was thrown around my body, covering from my neck and all the way down. A giant mirror was rolled in front of me, revealing a mess of black hair over my head and a long mustache and beard.

I heard a familiar "shiiink" noise. The hair on the back of my neck stood up as a familiar steel blade stood merely a few centimeters from my face. My hagibis.

"Ferid, for the love of all that is good, do not cut my face." My hands gripped the seat violently, my body tightening up. "Aaah-!"

"Don't move. I haven't shaved anyone before, but I do consider myself an artist."

"I think you're supposed to lather my beard first,"I said nervously, my face slowly backing away from the approaching blade.

"Hm...I guess."

Ferid disappeared, fear of death the only thing chaining me to the chair. After he returned, Ferid started lathering my beard and mustache.

"One day, a common mechanic, now, a wandering gunslinger,"Ferid mused.

"You're gonna make me into a slave? Huh? You're gonna drain me until I'm white?"

"Now you're just exaggerating!"

Ferid then lifted up the blade to my beard. "Please, be careful,"I softly said.

"Just hold still~."

Ferid laid the edge of the straight blade in an angle on the soap-covered surface of my skin, cautiously scraping upwards, cutting the hair off with ease, until-

"Aah!"

Ferid cut a small gash across my chin. "Whoops~! Sorry,"he smiled.

The gash stung, but Ferid continued with ease. "Dammit..."

"I already tasted your blood, and I could tell you right now that draining you is the least of our priorities. Anyway, I do have an easy job for you."

"And what is that?" Ferid was halfway done with shaving off my beard and mustache.

"I always thought how fun it would be to have a butler around here. They're always so fun to look at."

"A butler?"

Ferid placed the knife down on a desk next to him, directing my eyes to the mirror back in front of me as he wiped the excess soap off of my face with a towel. I was cleaner, everything shaved except for a thin mustache across the top of my lips. The gash wasn't bleeding out as much as I thought it was. Ferid then grabbed a pair of scissors.

"Ferid, while you did a surprisingly good job with the facial hair, I don't think you know what you're doing with my hair."

"Hm? Didn't I tell you I was an artist."

"Yeah, an artist, not a barber."

"Same thing."

Ferid started cutting, keeping with the conversation of my new "job."

"You'll start with keeping the premises clean, cutting the shrubbery, wiping the marble, setting the table and-"

"All by my lonesome?"

"Why, of course! Being my butler is a demanding job and I believe you're the most exceptional person here."

"Because you know me, or because I'm the only other human around here not under 14?"

"Hm...both. Anyway, where was I? Oh! Right! You also have to work on my cars."

"Your cars?" That tidbit of information actually perked my attention. "Which ones do you have, other than the Impala?"

"You'll see. You'll also have to teach Crowley."

"Is Crowley a mechanic, too?"

"Not yet, but it would be nice to see you two bond over common interests!"

"Right..."

Suddenly, the image on the mirror shocked me. I saw myself over a year ago, almost like I was never in the Apocalypse.

"How did you do that?"I asked in wonder.

"Like I said, an artist!"

Ferid twirled the pair of scissors around his index finger and placed them on the table. He threw the sheet off of me, standing my aching body up.

"So, a butler?"I asked again. "Can I have my knife back?"

"No. If anyone were to see you armed, they would kill you on the spot."

"Fair enough...boss,"I sighed.

Ferid laughed, the sound echoing throughout the enormous room.

"So, where are you setting me up, hm?"

"Oh? I have the perfect place for you!"

* * *

"What the fuck is this!?"

Ferid led me outside and down the winding stone path to a small one-story, one-room building with an outhouse behind it. It was gothic in design, but was run down and likely unmaintained for a better part of a...however long it stood here.

"Is there no room in your fancy fucking mansion?"I asked disappointedly.

"Of course, but these are the servants quarters."

I sighed again. "Of course...how unobservant of me,"I said sarcastically.


	4. Downwards

Downwards

* * *

I didn't realize how much I would hate standing until Ferid had me literally standing for hours on end without break or pause. Dressed like an actual butler, wearing a black suit and white gloves, Ferid didn't use me much but greatly enforced the idea that all butlers stood for hours, which probably wasn't true. Sure, there were the occasional tasks of cleaning and serving, but it actually turned out to be boring rather than fearful.

This went on for a matter of months. Between set intervals on blood "donations" and milling around, the more interesting parts came when Ferid asked Crowley to come over for a drink, which turned out to be Ferid's way of telling Crowley to work on his cars.

Today, Crowley was sent to work on the Impala, to which I had to oversee. It felt a little awesome for a while, me telling the Thirteenth Progenitor on how to change oil on a car.

"You see the bolt?"I asked, finally sitting down on a stool.

"Yeah,"Crowley said, under the raised car.

"Okay, now get the socket wrench and the oil pan. Set the pan under the bolt and then take the bolt out."

"Tell me again why I'm doing this when Ferid has an actual mechanic?"Crowley asked.

"I don't know? I consider this my break,"I chuckled softly, taking out a cookie from my jacket pocket.

"Break? What do you do all day?" Crowley rolled out from under the car.

"Nothing!"I said. "He makes me clean the mansion for, like, an hour and then he just makes me stand in the room where he's in all the time. It's insane!"

"That's it? You have it easy for livestock."

Irritated, I crumpled my fingers into a fist, that fist pointing its index finger angrily at Crowley.

"DON'T call me livestock! That's demeaning for me to be labeled and for you to say!"

"That's what humans are,"Crowley apathetically said. "You're nothing more than sheep to us. You're no different."

I kicked the stool out from under me, standing up. "God dammit, Crowley! Ain't you hear of empathy! What if you were in my position!?"

"But, I'm not."

"Gah!"I punched the wall. "Ughh...just change the damn oil already!"

"Fine. Fine. What do I do now?"

I calmed myself down, my hand matting my hair back into place. "Unscrew the bolt, let the oil drain out, and change the filter."

"Okay...I unscrewed the-GAH!"

Crowley pushed himself back out, his face and hands now drenched with oil. I burst out laughing, Crowley wiping the crude oil from his face.

"Hahaha! What happened?!"I laughed.

"I forgot the oil pan..."he fumed in annoyance.

I grabbed a towel and threw it to Crowley. "Karma is a bitch, ain't it?"

"That still doesn't mean you have it easier than most of the livestock,"Crowley growled, wiping his face and red hair with the towel. "I thought Ferid would have killed you by now."

"Yeah...thought so, too."

Crowley threw the towel back at me, oil still stained in his hair and hands. He still looked mad, his red eyes locked with mine.

"I'm just saying, at least have some empathy to see yer friend stuck as a bastard's servant."

"Aww~! What did I do to you?"

Ferid's sudden entrance caught me by surprise, especially since I called him a bastard in front of him.

"Ferid! I...I didn't see you there,"I coughed.

"Hm~? Crowley? Why do you smell like oil?"

Crowley sighed. "Long story. I still don't understand why you make me do these things."

"Don't you love it? I know Thai-kun does."

"Then make him do it!"

"He's too busy being my butler."

"Yeah, sure..."I trailed softly. "Oh, by the way, Ferid, I've been meaning to ask you, there any way I can get any more breaks? You got me standing for the entire day doing nothing."

"Hm...denied! You're still new around here."

"I've been here for four months!"

"Four months? It felt like four days to me. Are you sure?"

I sighed, my hand wrapping around my eyes in disappointment.

"Don't fret, Thai. There's one thing I need for you to do."

"I swear, if you want me to deliver something to the Queen again, I'm gonna need a gun because she thought during that one time that-"

Ferid suddenly tossed something at me, to which I grabbed reactively. The familiar grip handle sent shivers down my spine. I looked down, seeing a familiar chunk of wood secured within my grasp.

"Oh...you actually gave me a gun."

It wasn't just any gun, however. It was a Remington New Model Army 1858. The handle was cherry wood, the frame and barrel gunmetal black with the cylinder a flat silver.

"Where did you get this beauty?"

"I have a lot of goodies hidden around this Mansion,"Ferid said, wrapping his arm around my stiffened body. "I thought having it around would be the best way to remember the fallen Gunslinger."

"But, I'm still alive."

"I know! This was half a year ago. Then, we found you, coincidentally."

"Why do I have the feeling of suspicion? Something you're not telling me, Ferid?"

"Nope~."

I pulled down the loading lever, releasing the cylinder into my hand. It was converted for .44 rimfire cartridges. After replacing the cylinder, I cocked and dry-fired it, a sharp click echoing in the garage. I've shot blanks, wax cartridges, and live ammunition countless times, the crack of shots echoing throughout my mind. The smell of gunpowder lofted in my nose, but I was immediately taken back by Ferid's playful nudge.

"Hey! Are you listening~?"Ferid asked.

"Uh...something about 'target practice?'"

"Why is your hand shaking?"Crowley asked.

I looked down, my right hand slightly shaking, its fingers still wrapped around the cool wood grip. My left hand wrapped around it, bringing my hands down to my waist.

"I haven't done this kind of thing for a while now..."I said.

"I thought you told me you killed vampires before? That by itself is a feat,"Ferid said.

"Sure, I guess, but not with this. This Single Action takes more effort. You gotta think about cocking back the hammer, taking it out of the holster, aiming at a small target, shooting from the hip, not to mention that this is a different pistol than my-"

"Then now is your time to practice."

"You can't be serious? You're going to trust me with live ammunition?"

Ferid took my left hand, unwrapping its fingers before laying three .44 Rimfire bullets encased in steel over the palm.

"Ooh..."

My interest spiked. I've never seen bullets like these encased in steel. And, the idea of doing Fast Draw again was like a breath of nostalgia for me, coupled with the obnoxious fumes of the past and the aura of dread cast by the two vampires besides me.

"I...I guess, but, where are we doing this?"

"All in..."

Ferid suddenly looked down, Crowley's eyes following towards the floor as well. Confused, I looked down too, only to see the floor was now pitch black and wet. I lifted my shoe, a thin stream of crude-smelling oil dripping from the sole.

"Uh...Crowley, did you, uh, did you replace the oil pan?"I asked.

I heard a sigh, followed by a long pause of us just looking at the floor. Ferid unwrapped his arm from my shoulder, leaving me to stand in a literal puddle of oil. A broom suddenly struck me in the chest, nearly breaking my balance.

* * *

I stretched my back, letting my arms extend past my back as far as they would go. I was facing a row of targets, the signature alternating rings of red and white with a red center circle staring right at my own blue eyes. A table in front of me held a number of cylinders that all matched the Remington.

I brought my arms back to me, taking my right white glove off of my hand. A black leather rig was strapped around me, a right-handed holster carrying the loaded Remington. Normally for WFDA competitions, live ammunition was never used, but this wasn't the WFDA anymore.

I cursed Ferid in my mind, putting both hands on the table and leaning myself down, eyeing the targets.. Crowley walked over and patted me on the back, earning a growl from my throat.

"Something about this feels too good."I said frustratingly. "I don't do jack for him, and now he has me shooting again? Something is fishy about this."

"Well, we did like you for your shooting abilities."

"That's it? Nothing else?"

"It was the most interesting part about you."

I frustratingly sighed and stomped my boot on the ground. "Remember what I said about empathy, Crowley. You gotta have at least a tiny bit of understanding on what I'm going through here."

"It's not like we imprisoned you and forced you to drain all your blood."

"No, but you did technically imprison and enslave me."

"You call this slavery? You're getting the royal treatment!"

"Okay, maybe, but I'm being held here against my own will."

"Would you rather go out there and be hunted by monsters with little food and water to get by?"

I banged my head on the table. "There's no good side to this story. There's only a bad side, and an even more worse side."

"At least you're reliving your glory days."

I turned my head back and faced Crowley. "And what makes you think that I won't just whip around and shoot my way out of this place? I got the ammo."

Crowley crossed his arms and cocked his eyebrow with a cocky grin. "You think you're that fast?"

"I'm plenty fast, thanks."

I felt a hand reach from across the table and wrap itself on my shoulder. I spun my head back forward, amazed to see Crowley now in front of me from across the table.

"Think you can top that?"he grinned.

"...you win this round, Crowley."

I then heard Ferid enter the room, carrying an electronic timer.

"Okay~!"Ferid chimed, Crowley walking back behind me. "Are we ready!?"

"So far, so good,"I said, standing back up. "What's the course?"

Ferid started explaining the course. Different targets would light up at random intervals with timer screens lit over them that timed reaction speed until the shot hit the mark. Everything would not only depend on my reaction, but how quickly it would take for me to reload and fire again. Accuracy would also be tested to see if speed affected it at all.

I was naturally uncertain of my abilities, having not even practiced my draw in a while. However, I rubbed my hands together, slightly squatted down as I leaned back a bit, and eyed the targets.

"Wait!"

Ferid suddenly threw something at me. "Would ya' stop throwing shit at me!"

"Put it on!"

I scoffed. It was a black Stetson hat with an Ace of Spades stitched onto the band around the hat. I twirled it on top of my head, going back into my ready position, only with my fingers lightly grasping on the border of the hat, my stance now that of the Cowboy Surrender.

"Ready?!"Ferid chimed.

I groaned, rolling my eyes. "I believe you're supposed to say, 'Timer. Set.'"

Ferid chuckled.

Suddenly, I heard an electronic beep. My right hand shot down towards the butt of the Remington, jerking it out as my left hand pulled back the hammer. The first shot hit the first target within 0.289 seconds. The next two lit up, my gun keeping up with the current rate of 0.29 seconds per target. I fanned the next three shots, quickly jerking down the loading lever to release the cylinder. I jammed the next cylinder inside the gun, pushing the lever back up before fanning my next few shots.

I raced right to left as the targets grew increasingly faster. Adrenaline rushed through my system, my breath growing rapid. My mind, hand, and gun kept their best at tracking the random patterns of targets. My hands started cramping with each shot taken, the smell of gunpowder in the air. I jammed cylinder after cylinder inside of the gun, keeping my pace in shooting the targets as fast and accurate as I could.

On the final cylinder, five targets lit up at the same time. I cocked back the hammer, fanning the gun with each shot. The final five shots hit bullseyes, each target timed 0.45 seconds, the course over.

I caught my breath, my left hand supporting my body on my left knee, my right hand shakingly holstering the gun back in its holster. Well, I thought it was over. I heard another beep. Reacting quickly mid-breath, my hand shot out the pistol again and fired the last shot at the center target, the final time reading 0.19 seconds.

I dropped on the table, my hands supporting my body, wasted cylinders strewn all around my feet. Ferid started clapping as my breath grew short and rapid.

"Ferid!"I wheezed.

"Oh! Hold on!"

Ferid stepped up next to me and dropped a plastic inhaler, to which I gratefully used.

"Impressive time,"he mused with a grin. "Nineteen-hundredths of a second...impressive."

"It's...not Darby fast,"I huffed in fatigue, bent over my waist. "Fastest time is, I think, one hundred-and-nine-thousandths of a second. Nine hundredths of a second faster than that."

"That's still pretty fast,"Crowley said, stepping to my left.

I pushed myself back up straight. "Yeah, that was pretty fast,"I said.

"What's going on here!"

The three of us whipped around, the voice of a mystery person booming across the room behind us. Behind us was the Queen, Krul Tepes, the Third Progenitor, but next to her was a significantly taller darker-skinned vampire wearing an overcoat, black suit, and black gloves. His hair was pale, his eyes glowing red and staring right at me.

"Second Progenitor Urd Geales!"Ferid said, shocked. "You're here early!"

"Seco-"

I was immediately quieted by Crowley, who squeezed my hand harshly.

"What are you doing here, Ferid Bathory?"the vampire named Urd Geales asked with a stern voice, Krul figuratively foaming at the mouth with anger.

"Well,"Ferid nervously chuckled, scratching the back of his neck. "I was merely running a tiny experiment with one of my personal livestock. He claimed to be faster than a vampire."

My eyes widened, my head slowly turning towards Ferid. What the hell was he saying? I didn't say that!

"You!"Urd's harsh voice captured my startled attention, frightened and anxious at the same time. "Is this true?"

I cleared my throat, a nervous smile forming across my face. "Well, see, here's the thing about that-"

Urd suddenly looked at the timer behind us before looking at the gun on the table.

"Oh boy..."I silently muttered. "You really did it this time, Thai."

"0.19 seconds...not bad for a human,"Urd commented.

Well, he just took a personal achievement and shredded it.

"What's your name, human?"

I coughed. "Thai, sir."

"Thai...you know it is illegal for livestock to be armed. I would have you killed where you stand."

I kept my mouth shut, my body paralyzed with fear.

"Ferid,"Urd said. "Arming livestock would also get you killed. You know this."

"I was just testing his abilities,"Ferid said. "Thai is a well-behaved human. He knows to obey his masters in every task directed to him."

He literally just talked about me like I was his damn dog. However, I had to control my outburst, seeing as how this "Second Progenitor" seemed to be already angry about me holding a gun.

"He's my most loyal servant. Isn't that right, Thai?"

I forced a smile and grumbled, "Yes. That's right." (I'm gonna fucking kill you, Ferid!)

Urd wasn't impressed. He suddenly stepped towards us. Crowley immediately backed away, Ferid doing the same afterwards, leaving me to face the Second Progenitor all by my lonesome. I was cornered, the table to my back, Urd leaning in close to me with those paralyzing red eyes of his.

"P-please..."I stuttered, unable to move out of fear of dying.

"You think you're faster than a vampire?"Urd asked menacingly, towering over me.

"I...I never said that."

"Are you accusing your master of lying to me?!"

"Gah! I...I'm not-! Maybe?!"

Urd then turned to Ferid.

"Haha~!"Ferid mirthfully smiled. "I might have exaggerated the truth...but he is the Second Fastest Gunslinger Alive!"

I face-palmed, thinking that my death was nigh.

"Second Fastest Gunslinger Alive...interesting title,"Urd commented.

"It's only a title,"I said. "Let's not take things too literal now!"

Urd took a minute to think, his eyes fixed on the timer that read one of my fastest times. He then looked back at me, my body immediately cowering under his long stare.

"Do you want to kill me?"he said.

I gasped. "Wha-! No! No, I-!"

"You want to take that gun and shoot all of us, don't you?"

I didn't realize I was shaking, my head spinning as he got even closer to me, his face merely inches away from mine. "Don't put words in my mouth!"

Urd's hand suddenly slammed the table. A split second as he did so, the barrel of my pistol was pointed right at his forehead, the hammer cocked and my index finger barely pressing on the trigger. Everyone's eyes, except for me and Urd, lit up, shocked at the standoff. I, myself, was the most surprised. Suddenly, I lost all feeling, my body cold. Even if I wanted to kill Urd Geales before he killed me, I couldn't; the gun was empty.

My mouth stood agape, my hand shakingly dropping the pistol. I nearly fell, catching myself on the table, my eyes still locked with Urd's ferocious glare. I gulped, breathing slowly with tears welling in my eyes.

"That...that was an accident,"I softly pleaded, my voice quivering. "Please, don't kill me."

Urd stayed silent, rising over me once again. He kept his long glare at me, his body as still as a statue.

I cried out in pain. Urd's shoe kicked in my left shin, breaking it nearly in half. I immediately dropped to the ground, a combination of splintering pain mixed with a raging wave of numbness.

"GAHHH! AAUUGHH!"

My foreleg was broken, bent in a 165 degree angle facing outwards. The four vampires didn't even say anything, only staring at me as I writhed in agony. The overwhelming pain was slowly tearing me away from consciousness, the pain heightening with every second and every slight movement.

* * *

"Pathetic,"Krul said.

The "Gunslinger" passed out from shock, currently being taken away by two vampires headed off to an infirmary. Crowley trailed behind them, carrying Thai's hat.

"Who is he really, Ferid Bathory?"Urd asked, his tone still serious. "Every adult human has died because of man's unquenchable lust for power, but he still lives."

Ferid shrugged. "I'm just as surprised as you. There have been a few adults running around Japan still." His snake-like eyes darted towards Krul, who narrowed her eyes back at Ferid.

"Who is he?"Urd asked once more, his patience wearing thin.

"He really is the 'Second Fastest Gunslinger Alive,' but most people back where he came from knew him as 'Tombstone Tim.'"

"What kind of name is that?"Krul spat.

"His stage name,"Ferid said.

"Stage name?"Urd said. "You said he was 'The Second Fastest Gunslinger Alive.'"

"He really is, but he never killed anyone...well, that's a lie. He's already killed two people."

"Two people?"

"One with a wax bullet, and the other with a silver hair pin."

* * *

I was still in pain, but I groggily opened my eyes anyways, blurry light shrouding my vision. As it cleared, I looked around me to find myself strapped to a hospital bed with handcuffs with an IV inserted in my hand. My left leg, numb with slight pain, was raised, metal all around it. My head pounded, my lips dry.

"Ah. You're finally awake."

Crowley was next to me, reading what looked like a report. He put it down before running his hand across my hair.

"Crowley? How long was I out for?"

"About three days."

"Three days? Oh God...please don't tell me you were my doctor,"I weakly said.

"Me? No,"he said, patting me softly on the shoulder. "Luckily for you, some vampires do know how to do medicine. Yours was a simple fix for them."

"Oh, I'm sure it was their delight to cut into my leg and feast while fixing,"I sarcastically, angrily said.

"I made sure they didn't take too much,"Crowley smirked. "Bad news for you, though. I guess you're going to have to wear a brace permanently."

"A brace? You mean I'm crippled without one?!"

Crowley held me down, myself realizing I was nearly sitting up. "Calm down. An asthma attack is the last thing you need right now."

"No, Crowley, the last thing I need right now is for someone to tell me I'm crippled." A sharp pain jolted in my leg, causing me to drop back down on the bed. "Fucking hell,"I groaned. "I said for him not to kill me' I didn't mean he could cripple me! Oh crap! What if he's gonna finish the job!?"

Crowley kept his hold on me. "Thai, calm down. You should be extremely lucky that he didn't even kill you on the spot."

"You're gonna get me out of here, dammit,"I muttered. "You're gonna put me in a car and I'ma drive outta here like it was the damn Apocalypse all over again."

"That'll just make him want to kill you even more. You'll be fine."

I cocked my eyebrow, giving him a wry look. "You don't really think that, do you?"I plainly asked.

"...no, not really."

I sighed in defeat. "Who is he anyway? Second Progenitor, huh? He's even more worse than our Queen?"

"Technically, he's the ruler of all vampires as of now."

"...so, who's the first?"

"He disappeared a very long time ago. Not much is really known about him, but as for Urd Geales, he resides in Russia. However, it looks like now he's here for an inspection of Sanguinem."

"So, I was shooting a gun in front of your lord? Great..."

"I haven't seen him around, so I think you're in the clear. Plus, no one came in to kill you while I was gone."

I rolled my eyes. "That's a slight relief, I guess. When can I get out of here?"

"Tonight. We just need to put the brace on you."

"That's good, I think."

Crowley let go of me, allowing me to rest. He sat back down, pulling something from out of his pocket.

"Whatcha got there?"I asked, curious.

Crowley eyed it for a moment. "Haru is dead, isn't he?"Crowley asked.

I closed my eyes. "He died in my arms,"I softly said. "All I ever see now when I close my eyes are his lifeless face staring right back at me."

"I didn't know it was that bad,"Crowley said.

I shook my head slightly. "Sometimes I wish I was taken there right along with him. It ain't fair, Crowley. It just ain't fair."

He handed me the object, which I knew to be the picture of me and Haru I took from the Temple. I couldn't bring the picture up to me, but my right hand grasped it lightly enough for me to see it.


	5. Tombstone

Tombstone

* * *

A week since the incident, I was out of a wheelchair and finally walking down the luxurious white halls of Ferid's Mansion. This time, slight discomfort radiated with each step of my left leg, now bound together by a thin metal brace that I had on since getting off the gurney. My left hand wielded a polished wood cane to help with balancing. I was rendered unable to run, jump, or even jog normally, but maybe it would get better as time goes by.

In my right hand was a silver platter with a green wine bottle filled with blood and a few crystal clear glasses. Ferid had a few guests over yet again, causing me to go get what he called "the premium stuff." I shuddered to know what I was serving to those bloodsucking bastards lounging around like nothing happened.

I slowly made my way down, keeping a meticulous eye on balancing that tipsy bottle on the platter, until I noticed something off of the corner of my eye.

I turned around and noticed something slip into a barely open door. I scoffed and turned myself around painfully, balancing the tray over my hand. Nothing.

I softly muttered to myself. "Walang anuman kundi mga anino-"

The door suddenly shut close, a loud bang echoing across the empty hall. I stumbled back, nearly tipping over the tray.

"Ano ang...hullo? Ferid!"I called out. "Piss..."

I stumbled over to a nearby table and laid the tray down. Against my best instincts, I felt like I needed to see whatever was inside. It couldn't be worse than a vampire at this point.

With each slow step, it felt as if the door was pushing itself back away from me. My breath suddenly turned cold, a chilling feeling laid over my hands. I could have sworn I saw my breath at one point. Something ominous was coming my way, or rather, I was stupidly walking towards it. Regret hit me instantly, but something kept pulling me towards that door.

I wrapped my right hand on the knob, feeling its ice cold surface. Normally, things down here were pretty cold, but something felt wrong. I braced myself, slowly turning the knob around before pulling the door to me.

"Who's in-."

It happened so fast. A gust of wind nearly blew me back from the darkness of the room. I closed my eyes for a quick second, but upon opening them I saw a dark figure standing in front of me. It grabbed me by the shirt collar and pushed me back. I landed on the ground, my right arm instinctively covering my face in fear from whatever was in that room.

"Hey!"

I turned my head around, bewildered and frightened.

"Urd Geales,"I gasped. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

The stoic vampire merely stood a few meters away from me, holding a slender, dark box under his arm. "What am I doing here? Why are you on the floor?"

"I-"

I whipped my head back around, suddenly remembering the apparition that assaulted me. However, the room was suddenly empty now, just a storage closet full of janitorial equipment and a dangling flickering bulb under its ceiling.

"I...n-nevermind. I just fell."

Urd walked past me, not even so much as offering to help me up, and grasped the wine bottle on the table, reading the label. I shakingly reached for my cane, using it to help me off the ground. I ached and pained, supporting myself with a rapid heartbeat and shaking cane. I put my sweaty palm against my forehead, trying to process what just happened. Was it another one of Ferid's pranks?

"I guess you're the guest Ferid is having over,"I said, trying to avoid what I perceived to be my imagination haunting me.

"How is it that you're still alive,"Urd asked, his tone the same monotonous, yet serious voice.

"Well, I did only fell..."

"No. I meant, how are you still alive even though nearly all of the world has been exterminated by the virus. You weren't even so much as crippled by it."

That was a good question, hell, an excellent question. I sighed, scratching my head, still thinking about the events beforehand. "I'm still wondering that, myself. Maybe...maybe I was just immune from the start. There is such a thing as Innate Immunity. I mean, that's how some people were immune to HIV and the likes."

"I'm aware, but it is oddly coincidental that a killer, who is also 'the Second Fastest Gun Alive,' is still alive and friends with Ferid Bathory."

I stepped back. "Where did you hear that I was a killer?" Surprises were just flying out of nowhere.

"One with a wax bullet, and the other with a silver hair pin. Both performed on separate lands."

I rubbed my eyebrow, my temper rising. "Ferid told you? Christ! He was there for the hair pin one, but we agreed never to talk about that, dammit."

"What about the wax bullet?"

My wrist tightened. "Argh-it was self defense. I was in the right. He hurt four people and nearly killed a fifth."

"'Competition gone wrong as drunk gunman fires at the crowd, only to be stopped by an armed competitor.'"

The hair on the back of my neck stood, anger twisting its way through my nervous system. I cringed a little. "That was the headline. But, I was merifully cleared of all charges and lawsuits against me. I saved myself and others! Same thing for the hair pin!"

Urd placed the bottle down and faced me.

"You misunderstand me, sir. My title does not mean I am a killer."I said.

"Maybe."

Urd picked up the platter, gesturing for me to follow him.

"I don't know anything about Ferid having guests over, but for now, I think I'll take this with me. Care to join?"

I softly sighed, tapping my finger on the polished handle of my cane. "Like I have a choice in the matter."

I begrudgingly followed Urd, who miraculously had the patience for me to keep up with my slightly slower walk. While Urd calling me a killer was still on my mind, I was still shook from the apparition in the closet. I didn't think vampires were real until recently, but what about ghosts?

"Urd Geales?"I asked. "There such things as ghosts?"

He looked at me like I, the handicapped gunslinger talking to the Second Progenitor of all Vampires, was crazy. "What kind of question is that?"

"Was just asking,"I said.

Urd scoffed. "Is there any place to have a drink in peace?"

"The balcony's not far from here,"I said. "It's just around the corner and out."

"Perfect. How long have you been here?"

"About four, five months, give or take. Crowley found me at Yamanashi Prefecture, hiding at my boyfriend's old temple."

Naturally, that perked a slight interest. "You had a boyfriend?"

"Best one I could ever have,"I said. "But, I know y'all can't understand love anymore. How long have you been around, if you don't mind my asking?"

"I don't remember."

On an outside balcony on the second floor, we sat across each other on a small table. Urd set down the box and the platter beside him, myself leaning my cane on my chair. Normally, I would be drinking with the other person, but I wasn't about to consume blood. I slowly leaned into my chair as Urd gracefully sat down.

"You go ahead and enjoy that,"I sarcastically said. "I'll just sit here."

Urd took out a flask from his jacket pocket and slid it across the table. I grabbed it before it could fall off, opening it before lofting a familiar odor.

"What is it?"I asked.

"Rum. Aged for 50 years in Jamaica."

I softly whistled. "I didn't know the Second Progenitor of all Vampires was also a sommelier. Thank you."

Urd simply gestured towards the bottle of blood. I placed the flask down, taking the bottle and pouring Urd a drink. I still wasn't used to this, holding my breath as to not smell the scent of blood. I placed the bottle down, putting the cork back in.

I raised the flask as Urd took his glass. "To the hopeful 'peace' between us, because life is too precious to lose,"I toasted.

Urd didn't say anything before we took our first drinks. The rum was surprisingly smooth, with hints of burnt sugarcane and spices. It still had its bite, making me take a breath. It had been a long time since I had a good drink.

"So,"I started. "What's on your mind."

Urd took a moment to speak, eyeing me intently with unknown motive. I had to remind myself not to get too friendly with Mr. Leg-breaker here. "You sounded clueless about your immunity,"he finally answered, "So, I guess you're not part of a secret organization."

"Secret organization? For what?"

"None of your concern. How long have you been shooting?"

I took another drink. "Uh, twenty years. Even coming to Japan from the States, Fast Draw enthusiasts would pay me a pretty penny to show them the trade and to do seminars. It helped me get by."

"Ferid told me a lot about you, how you're this 'excellent gunslinger,' an amateur mechanic, and a magic enthusiast."

I scoffed, slightly embarrassed. "I forgot wether it was Sleight of Hand that got me so good at Fast Draw or vice versa."

"He also said you managed to kill two vampires using a magic trick to fool them."

I leaned back on my chair. "...right...sorry about that,"I murmured.

"Don't be. Any vampire easily fooled by something so mundane shouldn't even be alive,"Urd coldly said. "I'm amazed they even went along with it."

"Erm, okay." My attention shifted towards the box. "What's in the box, if you don't mind my askin'?"

Urd shifted the box in between us. "I was gifted this a while ago. I thought I would return it until I ran into you." He opened it, revealing a folded up Chess board and set.

"Ah, Christ, I was never good at this,"I grimaced, noting an embarrassing memory. "I'm more of a Blackjack guy."

"Care to play a game?"

I hesitated, taking another swig of the gifted rum. "Sure, why not. You pick yer color."

And just like that, I was playing a game of chess with the Second Progenitor of all vampires. At first, I thought I was crazy, but then again, the pain in my leg kept reminding me that this was all too real. The game itself was silent, myself thinking that Urd was a master tactician, therefore making him a skilled chess player. But, it seemed that the game was taking a little longer than imagined. Urd finally broke the silence after taking my second Bishop.

"How do you like it here so far?"Urd asked.

"What kind of question is that?"I muttered, imitating Urd's remark towards me as I fiddled with a taken Pawn. "Of course I don't like it here. 'Donating' blood every week, forced to mostly stand idly by as Ferid does whatever the hell he pleases, given tasks that get me nearly killed by the other higher progenitors and such...what a life."

I looked back up to see the ever expressionless face of Urd Geales peering at me. Maybe I said too much.

"I mean..."

"Sounds to me you get it easier than everyone else I've seen here this past week. Mostly children who run around like mindless sheep, unsupervised by even the very guards meant to shepherd over them. Unlike you, they're only useful as livestock."

"Hey now, they're just kids. You can't really blame 'em for anything."

Urd moved his Bishop. "Checkmate."

"Hay nako..." I moved my Pawn between the two pieces.

"If I were to abduct you right now and take you back to Russia with me, do you know what you'll see?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "More underground cities?"

"Society. Even for humans, this is just sad. After all this time, they haven't even bothered to preserve anything about human culture here."

I was slightly confused. "Don't take this the wrong way or anything, but my thinking was that yer kind wanted to just enslave us, hence y'all callin' us 'livestock' and such."

Urd paused once again, moving his Queen across the board. Another checkmate. "Did you merely want to become a mechanic after becoming this glorified shooter?"

I scratched my head. "Err...when I was transitioning from Cowboy Action Shooting to Fast Draw, I was looking towards to becoming a Scientist, studied Biology for the better part of College. However, as I became more focused on shooting, I dropped out after failing my classes too many times. I was fine with the life I had previously, being a mechanic and all, but if that's yer way of askin' if I had any ambitions, then yeah, I had them."

"Ambition...a driving part of what made humanity succeed...and fail."

It grew silent again.

"Even when humanity both prospered and suffered, the balance of both our worlds still held its place. You would have gone your whole life without even knowing of our existence. With humanity's rise came the advancement of infinite cultures and societies, ones that corralled yourselves into your own pens for us to prey on unknowingly. Now, because a few destroyed the many, that balance is ruptured. While it is imperative now that humanity must be contained more strictly, there should still be some initiative to let them bring about the lives they once had."

"A different opinion than what others here would have,"I said.

"What's better, humanity corralled like animals, or allowing them to live freely in the world again under our protection."

"And what would be the difference in that?"

That statement gained a rising temper in Urd's expression.

I put my hands up. "I didn't..."

"Granted, we will control you all still with an iron fist, but you would once again live life as if it were normal."

I slowly put my hands down, looking down at the chess board. What Urd was mentioning sounded like a Totalitarian Regime straight out of 1984, or even the future in The Time Machine. I sighed and moved my Knight, taking Urd's Queen.

"You're holding out pretty good,"Urd said.

"Thanks...I guess,"I said.

While it was tempting, Urd's idea of a controlled society was no reimbursement for everything that everyone, including I, had to endure. I lost way too damn much for anything other than releasing me to help. Urd took the Pawn between it and my King. I sighed and admitted defeat, tipping over my King.

"Good game,"I said, lying back on my chair. "You win."

"I know I have,"he said.

I rubbed my eyes and took the flask again. "So, If I were to go along with this idea of yers, then would I be a Fast Draw Artist or a Mechanic,"I half-joked. I already knew the answer, to be honest, but I wanted to poke just a little fun.

Before I could take a sip from the flask, something heavy dropped itself on my lap, nearly tumbling me over my seat. I put the flask down, my eyes widening at the sight of the object on my lap.

"This...why are you giving me this?"

It was another revolver, although it wasn't the Remington from before. No, this was a Ruger Vaquero, a Colt-lookalike famed for its better strength and resilience in Fast Draw and the likes. I picked it up, quickly opening the loading gate to find that the gun was empty.

"Because I have an important task for you here,"he said. "Consider this a break from your boring job Ferid forces you to do."

"What? More target shooting?"

"I'll be brief. For some reason in Japan, a number of adults are still alive, just like you. However, unlike you, they aren't so easy to capture. Most notable are a bunch of soldiers who barricaded themselves in a building, taking in a considerable amount of livestock."

"Aren't y'all immortal? Why not do it yourselves?"

"Like you, they've managed to kill a force sent to stop them. Besides, while it would be easy to annihilate them, I'll see this as a test of your loyalty."

"Loyalty? What? I don't seem loyal to y'all already?"

"Serving blood on a consistent basis isn't reputable cause for someone of your 'legendary prowess'."

I sighed and slicked my hair back. "I told you, I can't kill anyone anymore. What makes you think I'll go along with this?"

Urd remained silent as he stood up. He stepped towards me slowly, myself sinking deeper into my seat. He suddenly grabbed my leg between the brace, gripping it tightly with his ice cold hand. I gasped in pain as I clenched hard on the chair's armrests, squirming slightly as Urd kept his grip.

"There are things worse than death, Gunslinger. If you think you're in any position to just deny orders, you obviously haven't been paying any attention to the situation you've found yourself in. Think carefully on this, Gunslinger. I will see you again, tomorrow."

Urd let go with a push, walking away without so much as another word. As he reached the exit, he passed Crowley Eusford, who happened to walk towards me. Even he didn't make eye contact with that ferocious vampire, the Thirteenth Progenitor taking Urd's place across from me.

"You two were playing chess?"he asked.

"Yeah..."

"And, he gave you a gun?"

"Yeah..."

Crowley smirked. "So, you're the 'professional' Urd has enlisted to take care of those soldiers in Kofu City."

My eyes widened. "'Professional'? Seriously? You all know this?"

"Yeah. It was decided on in the Progenitor Council and it trickled down to all our ears. Ferid and I knew it was you the moment he spoke about the 'professional'."

"Christ, there's no way outta this one. Why me, dammit!"

Crowley looked at the table, pouring himself a drink from the blood bottle as I grasped a Pawn from the board.

"So, what did you guys talk about?"

"Not much. Highlights are the job and...say, Crowley, there such things as ghosts?"

For some reason, the dark atmosphere of the cavern seemed even more dangerous in feeling with the mere memory of that apparition. Even though Urd was so quick to dismiss that question, maybe Crowley would have an answer for me.

"Hm...I don't think so. Ghosts are just humans' ways of explaining weird coincidences around them after people pass around them. Why do you ask?"

I scratched the back of my neck. "I'm gonna level with you, Crowley, I know for a fact that when I was walking down those halls, I saw something from the corner of my eye and before I knew it, some apparition attacked me from the janitorial closet."

Crowley looked at me like I was crazy, cocking his eyebrow and crossing his arms. "Are you OD'ing on medication again?"

I palmed my forehead. "I told you already that that was an accident! Besides, I wasn't even on medication! It happened only an hour ago!"

"Right...anyway, what about the job? You're agreeing to it, right?"

I sighed and placed the gun on the table, grabbing the flask. "Urd told me that they were taking in survivors, meaning children and the likes. Do you know how many soldiers there were?"

"Hm. About four or five."

"He wants me to kill them all in cold blood. Ain't that a bitch." I took a drink, finishing half of the flask. I gasped for air, closing it before placing it on the table. "He wants to use it as a test for loyalty...whatever that means."

"He must've questioned it when he found out you have the capacity to kill vampires with a loaded gun."

"I can't do it, Crowley."

"Huh?"

Like any morally right human being, I couldn't just up and accept the job of killing others just so that the survivors would wind up being enslaved by the vampires. However, then there was my sense of self preservation that I was so fond of. If only I hadn't stupidly decided to escape from those other military-looking people out of paranoia, I probably wouldn't be in this mess. I kept lightly palming the side of my head, thinking of any possible way I could get out of this.

"I can't do it,"I repeated. "I just can't do it."

"You're gonna have to if you want to live."

"But, if I do do it, will I be able to live with myself afterwards? I'm still recovering from past trauma, Crowley. Besides the fact that I'm basically enslaving my own damn kind, I'm murdering more to achieve that. I'm murdering people who had lives, who probably fought for the freedom we...er, I enjoyed. I know you can't understand this, but you gotta level with me here."

Crowley took a moment to respond, his discomforted expression looking right at me.

"What? You actually know what I'm talking about?"

"It's a long story,"Crowley sighed. "One that I've told to Ferid way too many times."

"Is that what you guys do all the time? Is their a summary? Abstract?"

"Do you remember the Crusades?"

I shook my head. "Weren't much for World History so much as Life Sciences."

Crowley sighed again. "I was a knight of God, fighting and killing to reclaim the Holy Land."

I nearly guffawed. "You? You're that old? Figures."

"You're going to have to do it."

"So the point was that because you've obviously done it so many times before, I have the capacity to do it?"

"Technically you have already done it twice."

I slammed my cane against the metal table. Crowley didn't even so much as flinch, keeping his relaxed figure and careless look.

"This ain't the Medieval Age anymore,"I said.

"But, it's not the Modern World anymore. At least, it's not the one you know and love."

I felt a lump in my throat. "I don't know who fucked up all of this, but I'm not going to degrade myself to further your guys' agendas. There has to be another way."

"Not if you want to be strung up and-"

"I'm just gonna stop you right there."

"Just take the job, Thai. Five people is nothing compared to your skill."

I balled up my fist, tensing every muscle in my hand. My blood started figuratively boiling, my teeth clenching. "Say I do this, Crowley. Fuck it. I'm mad. When am I gonna do this?"

"In two days."

"What time. Is it Morning? Afternoon? Night? Lotta Horsemen at Nighttime."

"I guess the Afternoon."

"Okay. So I waltz up to the front door, probably with two guys armed with guns pointed at me with three more inside. Are they actual soldiers or just people who happened to find guns?"

"Rumor is they were JSDF."

"JSDF. Japanese Self Defense Force, and that's if we're not considering the possibility that they were Rangers or such. Now, back to that scenario. Two men, now armed with assault rifles and covered with bullet-resistant kevlar and military training. Now, we all know I'm such a great shooter, but even if I take out two guys in the blink of an eye, now there are three others opening fire after hearing the shots. Now what?"

"That's what you're supposed to figure out."

"What am I, Mike Ehrmantraut? I'm a competition shooter, not a trained killer."

"That doesn't change the fact that you're dead either way. What's worse, torture, or the off chance that you'll die in a gunfight?"

Another stupid choice, only, I know I will regret the decision I had made. I picked up the Ruger, spinning the cylinder around with my thumb. I felt tears in the back of my eyes, a knot in my throat. I could only think about that scenario; me dying in a gunfight. Just the idea of it was trouble enough.

"No...not a gunfight,"I said softly. "There won't be one."

"You'll allow yourself to get tortured then? Are you serious?"

I placed the gun down softly at the table, shaking my head slowly. "Ain't gonna be tortured neither."

"...then you're still taking the job, but you won't kill them?"

I quickly opened the flask again and drank the entirety of its contents in one single gulp, my body shivering. I eyed Crowley, taking in a deep breath. "There won't be a gunfight...because they'l all be dead before they know it."


	6. Dead Man Walking

Dead Man Walking

* * *

Ferid led me towards his Study, Crowley trailing behind us. Around my waist was a black rig holding the Ruger, my Hagibis over my left hip.

"You're actually taking the job?"Ferid smiled. "Good on you."

"Just show me what you got,"I replied softly, seething internally with anger.

The three of us walked over to Ferid's large desk, Ferid casually reaching under it. A few clicks were heard from where his hand was before something popped up from behind us. Not a second later, a large cabinet pushed itself up from the ground, its two large cage doors facing the three of us. Ferid stepped to it and unlocked the doors, opening them up to reveal his small, yet personal stash of firearms collected from the centuries he has roamed this Earth.

"I thought that that revolver would be enough for you,"Ferid mused.

I ignored him, stepping closer to the firearms. I immediately picked one out that stuck out to me, a Westley Richards Double Rifle engraved in gold with a full ivory stock. I held it firmly against my shoulder and pointed it across the room.

"Too loud. Too cumbersome,"I muttered to myself. "But, a nice find."

"What are you looking for?"Crowley asked.

I replaced the rifle and ran my finger across the guns, seeing inlaid gold muskets, engraved Garands, decorated hunting rifles, and finally, a lever gun that caught my eye. I took it out, biting my bottom lip as I felt its polished black walnut stock.

"Chiappa Alaskan Scout, .44 Magnum. Mare's Leg."

I cocked the lever down, looking down the chamber to see if the gun was empty, which it thankfully was. It had a silver body and barrel, the barrel shortened to 12 inches. I pressed the butt against my right shoulder and looked down its front sights. As if training for CAS, I rapidly cocked the lever down and up, squeezing the trigger with each load.

"You got a silencer, Ferid?"

Ferid poked his head inside the cabinet before taking out a rectangular silencer and tossing it to me.

"Perfect." I started rotating it over the barrel, making sure it fit before I tested out the sights again.

"So, what's the plan, exactly?"Crowley asked.

I sighed softly, quickly taking out the silencer. "They see a guy they don't know armed with a revolver and exotic knife, they ain't gonna let him keep his arms. Now, a rifle seems mighty too big to conceal, but a rifle without a barrel? Better shot."

I cocked down the lever all the way, opening a lever on the magazine tube before screwing it out. I rotated the entire barrel off of the gun, separating it from the body.

"You're gonna kill five soldiers with a rifle with no barrel?"Crowley asked.

"No. Barrel's gonna be hidden."

"How so?"Ferid asked.

"I'ma need to sit down for this."

Crowley pulled up a chair behind me, allowing me to sit down. I carefully undid the straps of my brace, taking the left strips of metal in my hand. To be honest, it felt a little loose to begin with. I wrapped them around the rifle barrel with paracord I brought before redoing my brace over my leg. I brought myself up with my cane, taking a few steps to adjust myself to the slightly tighter brace.

"Can you see it?"I asked.

"Kinda, but I could mistake it for anything if I didn't see the actual rifle,"Ferid said.

"I don't know..."Crowley said. "I still think you should just take a bunch of guns and start going into those gunfights you always talk about in those Western films you keep making me watch."

I was kind of taken aback. "Those were some good movies, man, but they're movies. Like I told you, me against five trained soldiers ends up with me dead in a gunfight I never even wanted to be a part of in the first fucking place. But..."

I rubbed my forehead and tapped my cane on the ground, thinking my next words carefully.

"But...if I were to be accepted, rifle still on me...at night, I'll kill the ones asleep and pick off the rest. I'll shoot a flare to let you guys know when the job's done."

Ferid eyed me with amusement. "Assassination? Bravo, Thai-kun."

"Not really something for me to be proud of,"I murmured.

With the rest of the rifle, I placed it on a table, grabbing a screwdriver. I took off the butt of the gun, now with four separate pieces to complete the rifle.

* * *

It was time to go. It was early afternoon, the sun above me as I looked down from a section of the freeway. Back into my Levi's shirt, black jacket, navy blue jeans and knee-high boots, I sat alone on top of my reclaimed motorcycle. The "base" the soldiers holed themselves up was miles away from sight. I was alone, but I knew the vampires were watching. They always were. I couldn't stall for time anymore.

An hour later, I found myself driving towards the front gates, constructed by concrete barriers and military trucks. I was almost in awe, until I heard a distant gunshot. Suddenly, my front tire popped, my motorcycle spinning out of control. I jumped off in time to hit a bunch of bags on the ground as my motorcycle ran into one of the trucks lying around the area.

"Again? Seriously?"I groaned in pain.

Not a moment later, two guards surrounded me, pointing rifles right at me.

"Woah, wait!"I yelped. "I'm not a vampire!" I pulled up my front lip, revealing my teeth. "See?"

The two guards looked at each other, both wearing what looked like standard-issue JSDF gear. The rifles were definitely familiar to me.

I cleared my throat. "Speak...English?"

"Who are you?"asked a guard, his accent heavy.

"I...I'm a survivor. Ever since the Great Blaze. I was just driving around until I saw all these trucks here, and then y'all shot at me."

They paused for a moment, looking me over. The second guard then kicked lightly at my gun. "Slowly take off,"she growled, aiming her rifle right at my face.

I put my hands up. "Okay! Okay..."

I cautiously unbuckled the rig from my waist, the first guard grabbing it before stepping back from me. I saw behind the two a third guard walking over to the motorcycle.

"What happened to your leg?"the second guard asked.

I sighed. "Damn vampires. They caught me and just before I could shoot 'em, one of them kicked my leg in. Eight weeks of agonizing pain as I tried fixing it. Ended up stuck in a rig of broken metal and wood for the rest of my life. Maybe y'all can take a look at it."

She looked at it, training her rifle down. "For eight weeks, it looks well made. Are you a doctor?"

"No, but I do know how to live in the wild. I guess those mock survival training camps weren't such a bad thing, huh?"

The first guard caught the second guard's attention. He took out the Ruger and the hagibis. I couldn't help but think of a particular memory that greatly resembled this situation.

"Where did you get these?"

Crap, forgot to think of this one. "Uh, you know what?...I'm gonna level with y'all. You know how y'all sometimes confiscate firearms back in the day, but then y'all decide to keep 'em? I might have known someone from back then who decided to, uh, give me that Ruger right there."

"Anyone we know?"asked the second guard.

"Kara Vane? She weren't Japanese. Very noticeable."

The guard thought for a moment before lowering her weapon. She pointed at me with her gloved hand. "Kara always talked a lot about a 'dangerous, unsuspecting filipino with a revolver in hand.'"

I scoffed in disbelief. "You knew Kara?"

"Ever since she dropped down from Foreign Cadet School." She offered me a hand.

I couldn't help but smile. "She was one hell of a soldier, and an even better foreman when she came in to-"

"War Boys!"we both said in unison as she picked me up.

"Good God, I..."

No...no this couldn't be. Not even an hour in, and my entire plan already went to shit. How is it that even in times like this, I yet again met a friend of a friend? I was supposed to just get in, wait until nightfall, and do the job. Yet, now, the job got infinitely more complicated.

"Hey!"

The guard's voice snapped me back into reality.

"You okay?"

"Uh...yeah, sorry. Momentary lapse of...I'm just so glad to meet you guys,"I said.

She sighed and pat me on the shoulder. "No problem. It's what we do."

"Thanks...I understand that you might need to hold my guns until you deem me trustworthy."

She looked at the first guard, who nodded as he walked away. "Look,"she softly said. "I know you were one of Kara's friends while she was back in the city, but we still don't know you. Don't take this the wrong way."

"I won't! I promise."

"Well, I guess we should get you settled in. Oh! Sorry about the, uh, bike."

"Eh, we could get it...fixed."

"Yeah...well, let's go."

"Whoa-whoa, uh...I need my...I can't walk right."

She looked down at my brace and back up to me. "Here, I'll help you."

"Left side."

She helped me walk towards my motorcycle, which was being checked by the third guard. He pulled out random bundles of supplies, checking each saddlebag and all around the motorcycle. He looked back at the guard supporting me, nodding before walking away.

"You just had the revolver?"she asked.

"I had a rifle, but it broke when that vampire attacked me. Damnest thing too, broke that sucker in half like it was a toothpick."

"This your cane?" She took out the polished wood cane from the motorcycle's front.

"Stole it from a warehouse. Looked better than the stick I had."

After her and another guard dragged the bike towards the lot of useable cars, I carried the saddlebags around my back towards the base, the guard in front of me.

"How many of there are you?"I asked.

"Seven of us. Five of us, including me, were JSDF. The other two came from this other group in Tokyo, the...how you say...Demon Army?"

The mention of that name perked my interest, and my fear. "Demon Army?"

"Weird name, yes? But, they're okay. I've seen them kill vampires already."

I stopped in my tracks. "Really now? What're they usin'? Scoped rifles? Automatics?"

"No. Swords and bows. It's almost magical."

"What about you guys?"

"We managed to get a few kills, but the Demon Army usually gets most of them. Still, it's not without casualty. We buried three already."

I hung my head low, knowing full well that demise will either come from the vampires, or me. "Shame...damn shame. Anyone else here?"

"There used to be a lot of kids, but the Army shipped them back to Shinjuku. It is a safe place."

"What about you guys?"

"We get shipped out tomorrow. Including you."

I raised my eyebrow. "You trust me already?"

"Not really...but if you're really that Gunslinger from Kara's wild stories, then we got nothing to fear."

"Really...?"

"What's the matter? You sound...sad?"

"It's nothing,"I smiled. My hand ferociously gripped my cane. "Just cold is all."

Looking around its desperately reinforced interiors and hallways, the remains of the presence of a large population of kids were scattered around, empty as if left recently. I was led to a room with a hot meal and a canteen of water. Not even bothering to eat or drink, I quickly sat down, resting my legs on a stool. I quickly undone my leg brace, keeping an ear out to hear for any soldiers coming down the halls. I took out the rifle barrel and set it on the table. I dug into my saddlebags, retrieving disguised gun parts.

I hastily assembled the Mare's Leg, the rifle cold in my hands.

I stayed in my seat, the long hours of waiting for dark making me tired, anxious, and scared. The rifle was under a bundle of newspapers and blankets. It was an evil thing to do, to kill those that saved you. I thought about what would happen if I just headed out with them, but I knew the vampires must already have emergency contingencies for if I should fail, or try to run away.

Another cold chill ran through my spine; I swore I could see my breath. I jumped up from my chair and looked around, bunching my jackets closer. I was alone in the dark room, the windows boarded up.

Suddenly, I heard a knock on the door. I whipped around, nearly tripping onto the desk.

"Sir?"called out a familiar voice.

Shit..."Yeah! Come...in."

The JSDF soldier from before walked in, placing her helmet down on a nearby cabinet as she pulled up a chair to me. "Are you scared?"

I chewed on my lip as I begun to sit down. "Nah...just thought I saw a ghost. Your English is surprisingly good."

"I had good teacher,"she smiled. "Kara was...really nice."

I nodded, closing my eyes. "She's probably one of the better people I've known...I will never get a chance to..."

I drifted off in thought, remembering both warm memories and cold tasks. I rubbed my left wrist, tightening my grip with every twist and turn, my skin growing white. I chewed on my lip, my body trembling.

"Are...are you okay?"

I almost couldn't speak, my eyes drifting towards a knife strapped to her belt. "...I...I don't know, exactly..."I said, my voice breaking. Tears started streaming down from my face, the soldier resting her hand on my shoulder.

"Hey,"she softly said in a reassuring tone. "You're safe now. You get to go home."

"Home!? There...there ain't no home left...it's all gone. I'm done for..."

Images of my past life flashed in my mind; the many memories of fun, laughter, and innocence mixed with the malice and evil thoughts of what I was going to do next.

"I can't bring back what's lost...it's over."

"Come on. It will get better. That's why we are here. We pick up the ashes of our world and rebuild them. Everything will get better in time, with honest souls like you and me."

I shook my head, sniffling back my tears. "Ain't...ain't a world...I wanna live in...anymore. No one...deserves..."

She brought herself towards me, wrapping her arms around me, giving me a warm hug. I gasped, closing my watery eyes, the solemn tears rolling down my face and onto her shoulder.

"You're safe,"she assured me. "Everything will get better."

I gritted my teeth, giving a final sob. "You're a good person..."

"Do you want me to get you something?"

I held her in place with my left arm pressing her body towards mine, my right hand shivering on her left side. "I...I want..."

"Yes?"

I stopped shivering, my body relaxing. There was no more thought, the tears subsiding.

In one swift motion, I brought her in even more, shifting my body up to smother her face in my chest, my right hand grabbing her knife and plunging the cold steel blade into her chest. She let out a muffled scream, her hands trying to push me away. Without looking at her, I stabbed her again, this time above her collarbone. I twisted the knife, letting out a sob as I felt her body grow limp.

I left the knife in her corpse, letting it drop to the floor. My eyes stayed locked to the wall, my bloodied hands trembling once more with another cold shiver running through me. My shaking hands then balled up slowly, my mind knowing full well there was no coming back from this.

I grabbed my rifle from the newspapers, my cane as well, my eyes trying to avoid the sight of the body. However, I caught myself staring at her for five minutes, frozen where I stood. Her dead eyes pointed their ominous gaze straight towards mine, petrifying me with stone cold fear.

I bent down on my knees, my hand closing her eyes. I put the rifle down, picking her up and placing it on a bed next to me. I closed my eyes, taking the knife out of her before chucking it away. A glint across her neck caught my eye as I opened them, bloodstained dog tags revealed once I clutched them.

"..Izuna Nakamura...I'm sorry-I really am-but, you do not deserve a world like this...here, there be monsters."

I stuffed the dog tags in my coat pockets, taking my rifle as I took my leave. Outside, I looked around, empty hallways to either side of me. If I remembered correctly, there were three people outside, one more inside. I searched around, finding him asleep on a couch with his rifle leaning next to him.

I looked around silently, seeing a large pillow next to me. I softly grabbed it, cautiously stepping towards the soldier. Five feet never felt longer (except for maybe yesterday), finding myself right above him like a bedtime monster. I pressed the pillow onto his chest, taking the barrel of my rifle and pointing it where his heart was. Without waking him, I cocked the hammer back on my gun, pinning the pillow on him with the rifle. I fired the rifle twice, his body violently shaking as the bullets fired into him, the shots muffled.

I threw the pillow off, seeing two fresh gun shot wounds in the man's unarmored torso. I grabbed the dog tags, stuffing them back into my coat.

Suddenly, I heard a mug breaking behind me. I whipped around, my eyes wide open to see a soldier horrified at the entrance. Without thinking, I opened fire on her, missing two shots as the soldier ducked behind the wall, drawing her pistol and firing it at me from cover.

"Shit!"I roared, jumping behind the couch.

That proved to be a stupid endeavor; coming towards me were a line of bullets directed for me that were shooting through the couch. I let out a scream as the final one hit the couch an inch away from me. I counted at least six shots.

I slid out of over with my rifle trained at the wall, but she was gone. I muttered a curse as I stumbled back up. I grabbed for my cane, but frustratingly, I threw it on the ground. I kept the rifle in both hands, doing my best to walk as quickly as possible to find my Ruger.

It took me a while, relentlessly walking down empty corridors, the paranoia of the soldiers surrounding or corralling me making me constantly check around. As I turned another corner, I nearly dodged a shot coming from a nearby room, the soldier cornering herself inside.

"Naze kore o shite iru ka!"she screamed.

I sighed, shaking my head to the sound of frantic gunfire. I counted in my head, hearing the sixth shot. I cocked the rifle back and walked out of cover, approaching the room like a bat out of hell, causing the soldier to trip and fall on her back. As I entered the room, I saw she had another pistol on her. My Ruger.

"Stay...away..."she said, both hands on the Ruger.

"...I'm sorry..."

I shot her, but couldn't move away quick enough to dodge a bullet aimed at my left leg-specifically, my hurt leg. It nicked my brace, boring a gash across my calf while simultaneously breaking a piece of it off. I stumbled back, catching myself on the doorframe. I pushed myself back up, the pieces of the brace falling on the floor. I immediately regretted throwing away my cane.

I limped towards the soldier, a gaping bullet wound right at her heart. I tore off her dog tags before grabbing my Ruger. I looked around and found my rig and knife, wrapping it around my waist.

I heard shouting outside. I knew if I stayed here, they would pick me off. Going outside was just as risky, but seeing how my incognito plan failed, I had no choice but to confront them.

Taking my rifle, I marched outside, only to get barraged by a storm of bullets firing at me from the car lot. I ducked down next to an SUV, firing two shots from my Mare's Leg at a soldier behind a jeep. I shot him in the head, the last shot emptying my rifle. I cursed and chucked it, now with one soldier left.

"Where did you go..."

I ran towards the downed soldier, grabbing his tags upon reaching the body. I looked all around from the cover of the jeep, until I heard a can roll behind me. Looking behind me, I saw a metal canister roll to a stop on the far end of the SUV. I immediately screamed, dropping to all fours before scrambling out of there. Seconds later, I was thrown into the side of a car, a fiery explosion tearing through where I just was.

The explosion didn't knock me out, but it left me bombarded by burning shrapnel that gashed my back and left me burning. I threw myself down onto the asphalt, rolling around to smother the flames. With my tired eyes, I saw a blurry figure in the distance marching towards me.

I growled something fierce, picking up my burnt and scarred body from the blackened asphalt. I drew and cocked the revolver from my holster with my twitching hand, my eyes narrowing in on the man in front of me charging at me with his rifle.

"You son of a bitch!"roared the man.

"AARGH!"

I aimed my gun and took my shot, the man's body crashing to the ground. He let out a pained scream, ending only when his head made contact with the asphalt. I dragged myself to him, taking his tags with my bloodied hand. I stumbled back and, dropping down to my knees, my right hand slamming the Ruger on the asphalt. I looked down and saw blood pouring from my leg. I screamed in pain, rolling on my back near a roaring fire. Suddenly, a dark shadow loomed over me, the light of the fire blocked as a face with red eyes peered down at me.

"Cr...Crowley?"

"No gunfight, huh?"he asked.

"Fuck...they got me..."

Crowley crouched down, taking off his left glove before dipping his index and middle fingers in the wound on my knee. I hissed in pain as Crowley licked his fingers. "You're not gonna die, but that leg might need amputating."

"No! NO!"

Crowley tore a piece of cloth from my shirt, wrapping it tight around the wound. "Relax...I was kidding. The wound is just a gash on the edge of your calf."

"My back feels like its got glass in it."

"That's probably because it does. Come on, let's go."

Crowley picked me up with both arms. "W-wait!"

"Hm?"

"They said seven people. I only met five...where's the other two?"

"I only saw five,"Crowley said. "Who are the other two?"

"...I'll tell you later. Just get me the hell out of here."

"Hold on."

"What do you-"

* * *

All I could remember after that night was Crowley taking off like a jet, jumping from building top to building top in a matter of seconds. I passed out for an unknown amount of time after ten seconds, either blood loss, pain, or the sheer force of the wind and gravity doing the job. When I woke up, I found myself lying in a comfortable bed, my head resting on a satin pillow. Crowley was sitting next to me again, reading a thick book. Right after he noticed me rubbing open my eyes, Crowley ruffled through my hair, an annoyed look forming across my face.

"How long?"I simply asked.

"A day. Luckily, both your leg is fine and the job is done."

A painful reminder of that past night hit me. "I...I killed them."

"By the way, why the dog tags?"

"Er...call it proof of death. But, I guess that's why you shadowed me. What did Urd say?"

"He just nodded."

"...that's it? No 'good job'?" I sat up on my bed, stretching my sore back a little. I rubbed my wrists, looking around to find myself back at Ferid's Mansion, specifically the Guest Room.

"He just walked away,"Crowley shrugged.

"Ungrateful...at least it's done."

Crowley placed the book down, leaning his body closer to mine. At first, my general reaction was to move away, but, seeing as how I couldn't move, I leaned against his arm. Besides, out of all of the cruel, unforgiving monsters I was employed under, Crowley was probably the most tame of them all.

"I killed them...all five people,"I said.

"You said there were seven, remember?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. They were talking about two people reaching out to them, something about a 'Demon Army'."

Crowley's head tilted to the side. "Demon Army?"

I shook my head with disbelief and shrugged my shoulders. "I met 'em once before, on my way out of Tokyo. Supposedly, they've been hunting you guys in Tokyo. Damnest thing too, they're using swords and bows, not guns! Unbelievable, right?"

Crowley remained speechless, instead gazing at me with his red eyes.

"Yeah, so, they were shipping the kids out first, leaving the five of them soldiers to guard and wait for any other survivors...what a turn things went for them in just trying to be good."

I stared at the door in front of me, relaxing even more against Crowley's arm. My left arm subconsciously wrapped itself around his arm, Crowley not even moving. After that night, I knew I had at least an assurance that the vampires can somewhat trust me. My gun and knife were nowhere in sight, presumably taken back to Ferid's hydraulic gun locker.

Crowley suddenly wrapped his arm around me, pulling me even closer. My face was smushed against his thick chest, a grunt escaping my throat. I looked up, my right hand pushing myself up to meet his eyes.


	7. Carpe Noctem

Carpe Noctem

* * *

"GAWDAMMIT!"

I threw the wrench in my hand halfway across the room. It struck the wall of the garage, breaking a inch-long hole on the concrete. I kicked down the useless motorcycle. I tried fixing the damn thing for God knows how long but it finally gave out. Now, I thought about calling it quits, wiping my grease-stained hands with a rag. I groaned in defeat, tossing the rag behind me. I stumbled down onto the ground, making sure not to fall on my ass. I sat down on the cool concrete ground, hearing someone come up from behind me. I grunted, rolling my eyes.

"No magic tricks today, kid. Go home."

"A-are you okay?"called out a soft voice.

I sighed, turning my head around to see a blonde-haired boy. "Do I look like I'm fine, Mika? My damn bike's broke."

"Oh. Do you need something?"

"...no. Just run on home before Ferid finds you."

Enter Mikaela Hyakuya, the epitome (so far) of why I found Ferid to be the most disgusting bastard I ever met. The boy lived around with around half a dozen other orphans from the same orphanage, his family. Heartwarming, but even that ray of light was darkened by Ferid's evil touch. I tried my best in protecting him, even going so far as to steal food from Ferid's pantry just so Mika wouldn't bend his neck for it. Even still, Mika kept showing up for all this time, a routine most foul.

I turned my head back down, thinking about my next course of action. Mika merely stepped next to me, sitting down with me on the floor. I looked back at him, seeing little bumps under his jacket. I reached out, pulling back the hood slightly to see gauze taped over his neck and shoulders. I noticed he didn't even flinch when I did so. I sighed in disgust. "He keeps feeding on you like that, you won't last the winter,"I grunted, letting go. "I recommend you stop showing up here."

Mika put on a smile. I knew it was fake. "Ah, Ferid-sama is very generous, though. He lets me go home with good food for my family."

I rolled my eyes. "Sure, your family benefits from it, but do _you_ even like this?"

"I-"

"Do not lie to me."

I cut off Mika mid sentence, the two of us growing silent. I peered into his eyes. Slowly-ever so slowly-they started changing. They were once filled with light-hearted joy, but now all I saw was emptiness. There wasn't sorrow; there wasn't sadness. All I saw was emptiness...and a lit ember.

"Yeah...same here."

"But you have it easier. Ferid doesn't drink from you. You get to eat all the food you want. You get to drink all you want. You get to go out..."

Mika wasn't wrong. "...he still demeans me. I'm his God. Damn. Pet."

Mika looked up at me, but his eyes wandered off to just the right of me, aimed at something behind me on the wall. I looked to where he was looking at. My Ruger and Hagibis were in their respective holster and sheath, attached to my rig that hung on the wall.

"How did you do it?"Mika suddenly asked.

I turned to meet him. "Hm? How did I do what?"

Mika looked around, making sure no one was inside the garage with us. He leaned in closer, putting his hand up to cover his mouth from the left side as if whispering something to me. "H-how...how did you kill a vampire?"

My eyes lit up upon hearing him. I was stunned. "Where'd you hear that?"

"Ferid told me. He said that you 'are the fastest gunslinger to ever live' and that you 'killed five vampires.'"

I growled, cursing Ferid out inside my mind. "Yeah, well, don't believe all them dime novels he has you listening to. I ain't the fastest gunslinger, and I sure as hell ain't killed five vampires before."

"But-"

"I said leave it alone, kid!"I growled. "The gun's just for show. It ain't gonna do me no good and it won't do any good for you."

Mika gazed at me, his eyes narrowing into a glare. I glared back at him, wondering what the hell this kid was doing in trying to stare me down.

"...he also said you killed five soldiers."

I slammed the ground with my hand, the loud slap making Mika jump. I stumbled back up, towering over the boy. Anger seethed inside me, Mika's curiosity getting the better of my temper. I knew what he wanted. He wanted me to kill the devil in his story...or, at least wanted to kill the devil, named Ferid, for himself.

"Why don't you do it?"Mika asked, the same anger seething inside of him. "It would be easy for you. Just shoot him from behind!"

"And then what? Hm? Do the same to Crowley? To Krul Tepes? This ain't the Wild West, boy! Ain't no gunfighter in the world that can even comprehend of killing them."

Mika's fists balled up white, his eyes staring daggers at me. He bore his teeth, tears nearly coming out of his eyes. All those months and years spent being fed on by Ferid slowly dripped out, his face red with anger.

I sighed disappointingly, hobbling over to the counter behind me and grabbing a towel. I tossed it at Mika, Mika grabbing it middair.

"Wipe yer eyes, kid. I seen enough kids with teary eyes; you don't need to be one of them."

Mika tossed the towel down on the ground, furious. "Then give me the gun...I'll do it myself."

I was speechless. I never met a kid in my life who wanted vengeance as bad as he does. As much as I wanted to do the job myself, I was smart enough to keep those thoughts out of my head. Call it what you will, but it was self-preservation over suicidal vengeance. Now, Mika wanted vengeance. Even if it was blatantly called for, if he went down this dark path, there was a price to pay.

"Mika...you listen to me, and you listen good! You are no killer. I killed them five vampires. I killed them five soldiers. I killed two men trying to kill me long before this entire Apocalypse broke out." I bent down to face Mika eye-to-eye, the boy keeping that rattlesnake-glare. " ** _I_ **am a killer, Mika. It weren't out of vengeance, but out of self-preservation. Look where it's got me. I'm bending my ass twice-round to keep that eccentric piece of shit happy. This here leg," I said, smacking my hurt leg painfully, "was got just for pointing a gun on one of 'em. And, hell, he still needed me to kill them five soldiers."

My hand shot out and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him in violently, Mika struggled, his hands viciously trying to pry my fingers off of him, but I wouldn't budge.

"You. You're doing this out of what? Thinking you'll find his weakness? Oh, you'll find it, but when you attempt it, oh, your face'll be so bright and joyful once you see the light of freedom...but, I know how this story ends. You'll be lying in a pool of yer own blood and tears, screaming out for precious life. You think either you'll be triumphant or die horribly in this story, but no. I seen the disgusting, perverted way he looks at you. He will not be done with you. He'll make yer life a living hell and there'll be nothing to be done about it. So, do me a favor, Mika, and leave it the hell alone. Stop showing up to this mansion!"

I threw him away, hobbling back up. Mika fell back on his back, immediately scrambling back up to face me. Yet again, he stared daggers at me, a look I was still nervous about. The last thing I wanted to see was the poor boy dead on the ground...or worse.

"...you're a coward. You're no killer,"Mika grunted.

I let out a disgruntled, deep exhale. "...if only that were true."

Mika stormed out of the garage, leaving me to my own devices. I rubbed my eyes, feeling a little regret for talking him down like that. I looked back at the gun hanging from the wall, remembering all the plans I imagined in my head in killing Ferid and getting the hell out of dodge. All ended in pure failure. Now, my motorcycle didn't want to work, leaving me incapable of making even a hasty getaway From Ferid.

And...speak of the devil, I heard him open the door behind me. He was whistling a fanciful tune, closing the door behind him. I wiped my eyes, turning to face him. I nodded to him, giving out a pained sigh.

"No luck, Thai-kun~?"Ferid asked. "I thought you were driving it yesterday?"

I scoffed, hiding the aftermath of my...conversation with Mika. "Grr, didn't make it out of the block without it coughing up smoke and dying on me. Damn thing took too many hits."

Ferid grinned, stepping down from his seat before walking up behind me. He playfully patted my head. Annoyed, I quickly stepped away from him, fixing my hair.

"What?"Ferid innocently asked.  
"I told you I don't like being toyed around. I already demean myself to survive in here. Least you could do is let me be,"I grunted.  
"Hm? But, I saw Crowley rubbing your shoulder and you seemed fine about it."

I bit my lip, glaring at Ferid. "Yeah...at least he's the most normal person here. You-I have more problems with."

I stepped over to the cooler on the wall, Ferid giggling like a giddy schoolboy. "Really? But. I'm such a generous host! Especially to a good friend of mine~"

I tore open the cooler, grabbing a bottled water out of it before whipping around back to Ferid. "Two days ago, I was trying to read something and you went up behind me and BIT into my shoulder!"

Ferid suddenly rushed towards me, viciously shutting my mouth close with his gloved hand. His finger raised perpendicularly to his mouth. "Shush! I'm not supposed to be drinking directly from humans, remember?"

I tore his hand away from my mouth. "Case and point,"I growled. "Friends don't do that to other friends!"

Ferid scoffed, playing it off like it was nothing. "At least it was your shoulder and not your neck. Shoulder wounds are never serious."

"Gah! There's a major artery in the shoulder, Ferid! You nearly punctured it."  
"Exaggerating as always, Thai-kun,"Ferid sighed. "Say, speaking of Crowley, aren't you two doing something tonight?"

I ignored Ferid, opening the water bottle before drinking it halfway down. I grabbed my jacket from the wall. "I dunno. He says he needs something entertaining to do, so he wants me driving to Nagoya."

Ferid, his face still, suddenly grinned maliciously. "Something entertaining to do...hm?"

We both stared at each other, my blank stare against his ever-growing grin. It suddenly hit me. My face grew red. "Not like that, you perverted bloodsucker!"

"Hm?"Ferid said, his eyebrow raising. "What was I saying?"

I was flustered. "You-you...ah, hell! Whatever! I need yer car."

I walked over to the peg board holding all the keys to Ferid's cars. As expected, Ferid stepped in between me and the board, grinning his signature crocodile-like grin. I rolled my eyes. Ferid wagged his finger at me like I was a boy. "Uh-uh-uh. You don't just talk to your master like that, Thai-kun."

I scowled at him, growling curses under my breath. My fists balled up, my temper bubbling like boiling oil.

Ferid tilted his head, putting his hand up to his ear while leaning in towards me. "What was that, Thai-kun~?"

I spat a final curse, stomping the ground with my boot. It was abhorring to stoop so low to this fiendish bloodsucker. I closed my eyes, rolling them behind my eyelids. "...may I take your car, Ferid-sama?"

Ferid clapped his hands together, smiling contently. "Fu fu fu, Thai-kun~! Of course you may! But, don't stay out too late."

"Tsk! Pakshet! I'll stay out as long as I want to!"

* * *

Ferid's car was as pristine as the moment I sold her all those years ago. I had driven it a couple times, each time feeling as if I was back in the Past. The wind howled in my ears, blowing through my hair. Luckily, the ride to Nagoya was easier than expected. With the vampires' reach extending towards Tokyo, Horsemen were rarer to encounter, as well as the benefit of open roads. I cherished the freedom I had driving, the three hour trips back and forth from Kyoto to Nagoya and back feeling like three days. Sure, there was the occasional Horsemen that would chase me, but the car was fast enough to escape them. It gave me time to think, especially to reflect on my new life in Sanguinem.

My conclusion: It could be worse, but I HATED Ferid.

"Fuck you, Ferid,"I muttered. "Acting like a damn child."

I kept my eyes on the road, the Winter chills coming back to haunt the desolate remains of Japan. There wasn't snow yet, but it will eventually come. Every once in a while, I looked up at the gloomy sky.

I heard a _clink_ sound just next to me. I looked at the passenger's side, my eyes shooting open within the first glance.

 _Hello, Thai..._

I slammed on the breaks, turning the wheel around. The car drifted to a stop, its tires squealing like a mad beast on the cold asphalt. I rocked back and forth as the car skidded to a final halt. I wasted no time, drawing my gun at the now empty passenger's seat.

I spat a curse, frantically looking around. I kicked the door open, sprawling out onto the empty road. My eyes darted around, the sun starting to set. It cast a pale orange glow around the cityscape, large shadows cast from the fallen buildings.

I shuffled around in a mad frenzy, my gun flailing around with my eyes.

"I SEE YOU!"I roared. "SHOW YOURSELF! STOP HIDING!"

My rage-filled cries echoed out into the distance, the only reply being the brisk wind flowing through the land. Paranoia struck through me, my heart beating like a drum. Feeling both an asthma attack and a herd of Horsemen coming, I stumbled back to the car and quickly got the hell up out of there.

The hallucinations had been getting worse, becoming frequent whenever I was alone. That was one of the only few things I benefited from being in servitude from Ferid; I was able to keep myself preoccupied from seeing them. I remembered asking Ferid constantly about the existence of ghosts, but he merely shrugged it off. At times I thought he was lying to me, seeing as how ghosts existing in a vampire-filled world would be plausible, but he told me to let it go.

I kept glancing back at the seat, still empty since that stop. I growled to myself, telling myself that _he_ was gone. My thoughts on him finally ceased once Nagoya was in sight.

I pulled up to the front of the Mayor's Building, Crowley waiting for me with Chess and Horn. I still had a bone to pick with the two aides, but I was more concerned with Crowley. He stood there confidently like a knight, his hands on his hips and his chest out. I hopped out of the car, putting my hat on my head. I planted my cane on the ground, looking up as I walked up the steps to Crowley. The Thirteenth Progenitor lazily smiled at me. "Hello, Thai-kun!"

I'd be lying if I said that Crowley's smile didn't bring me slight comfort. "Crowley! You look...well, you look the same every time I see you,"I quipped.

Crowley looked at my hips. "It looks almost normal on you,"he mused.

I looked down, my Ruger over my right hip and my Hagibis over my left hip. I patted the gun and knife. "Never leave without 'em."

I approached Crowley, going in for a handshake. Crowley immediately took my hand and brought me in. My body jolted, scared that Crowley was going to feed from me. However, he merely brought me in for a tight hug. I was wrapped up in that muscular body of his, a sigh escaping my lips. Crowley kept his hold on me; I could feel the cold breath on my hair. I patted his back twice, Crowley letting go of me. I stumbled back, catching myself on my cane.

"Mm..."I grunted, catching my breath. "A few seconds more, you would've choked the life outta me."

Crowley seemed unfazed, shrugging his shoulders. "How are you doing?"

I slightly rolled my eyes. "So far, so good. You just saved me around a day's worth of dealing with Ferid."

"What did he do this time?"Crowley asked, his two aides walking back inside. They left the door open, Crowley walking back inside with me following. I took off my hat, brushing my hair back into place.

"Bit into my shoulder...again,"I growled. "Dude took a solid pint! He didn't even wait around to help me back up. I had to stuff my sash over my shoulder and walk to the OTHER side of the MANSION to find the ONLY First-Aid Kit to patch myself up. Damn thing still hurts."

Crowley looked back at my shoulders. "I thought I smelled something. Did you get here okay?"

I thought about telling Crowley about my problem, but opted not to. "Er...yeah, it was fine. We got gas here, right?"

"Yep."

"Okay...now, why'd you have me drive all the way down here? Hm?"

Crowley smiled, putting his arm across my shoulders. I hissed at the pain once his hand tapped right where my wound was, Crowley not even noticing as he brought me closer. "Well, I told you I was bored, so I thought having you over would lighten up the night."

I scoffed, the four of us walking down Nagoya Town Hall. "You're not trying to get at me, are you, Crowley Eusford? It's gonna take a LOT of alcohol to consider it."

"Don't be absurd, Thai. Besides, I have something else in mind that doesn't involve that poison."

"Like what?"

Crowley led me to a large assembly hall, the floor cleared with a decent amount of square space. Crowley let go of me, stepping in front of me with his hands at his hips. Chess and Horn stayed behind me, the three surrounding me. Nervous, I scratched my head in confusion.

"Er..what're we doing?"I asked. "Lemme guess, we're gonna shoot stuff."

Crowley smirked. "Hm...not quite. I did some thinking, and decided to teach you how to use a sword."

How to use a sword? I nearly guffawed, tapping my cane against my hurt leg. "How to use a sword? Crowley, there's a reason why I always use a gun."

"I know, but wouldn't it be good for you to know how to defend yourself without a firearm? How much ammo do you even have?"  
"Enough...but, how am I gonna fight the lot of you, hm? You guys are ten times stronger than the average man!"

Crowley nodded to Chess and Horn. The two vampires left the room, leaving the two of us alone.

"What's yer deal, Crowley?"I asked.

Crowley stayed silent, his hand reaching out to the top of my hair. His fingers started ruffling through my hair, his large hand petting me roughly. I grunted, my hands shooting out to his wrist to pry him off of me.

"Please stop,"I muttered.

He complied, his hand resting back over his sword hit. "You're extremely fortunate to have us for friends, Thai-kun."

I looked at him, wondering what the hell he was trying to get at. "Funny...I wa thinking the opposite."

Crowley raised his eyebrows, a slight frown on his face. "You'd rather have us as enemies?"

"No! I'm just sayin' that I wold rather have died alongside the masses than be stuck on some Apocalyptic Hellhole livin' with a bunch of vampires."

Crowley shook his head in disappointment, sighing softly. "It could be a lot worse, Thai."

I rolled my eyes, stepping around Crowley. "Pfft. You're not wrong, I guess. So, what're you getting at?"

I looked back at Crowley, who turned around and smirked once more. "Well, teaching you how to fight with a sword is merely selfish for me."

"Selfish?"

"Yep. It's more for my amusement, really."

Was he serious? I can't fight him! "Crowley, I don't know how to tell you this, but me against you is like a fish against a shark. It ain't gonna work! The moment we clash blades, I'm gonna be flying towards the wall!"

"Relax. We're not even using real swords."

Crowley walked over to the wall, grabbing two wooden swords leaning against them. He tossed one of them over to me. I reached out and grabbed it, taking it by the hilt. It had the shape of a medieval longsword, a considerable weight on my hands.

"Crowley, I-"

I barely saw it coming. I quickly put my sword up and stepped to the side, deflecting a charging Crowley. However, he hit the sword, the force nearly knocking me off my feet as I stumbled back.

"Argh! What the hell!?"I grunted. I regained my balance using my cane, holding out my sword in defense. Crowley stepped forward, his sword out.

"Always expect the unexpected,"Crowley smiled.

"Unexpected? Crowley, it's like yer training me for war,"I yelped.

Crowley raised his sword with one hand. "You're not wrong, Thai."

Before I could say my thoughts, Crowley rushed forward with inhuman speed, quickly swiping at my head. I ducked, hopping back and stepping again out of his way, quickly catching another attack with my "blade." Our swords locked, the two of us trying to push the other off of us. However, even with all my might, I could sense that Crowley wasn't even putting a tenth of his strength in the fight.

"This is pointless,"I complained. "Ain't no way I can fight like this with my leg all fucked up."

"That didn't stop you from killing those five soldiers,"Crowley smirked.

"Fuck you! I told you never to bring that up again!"

"Stop me then."

Crowley started to ever so slightly add more force behind his push. I started to be pushed back, my left hand using my cane to keep myself upright. I started to lose balance. "Stop you? Like hell I could! Who in the hell is gonna fight me with a sword other than you lot?"

Crowley didn't answer, instead pushing me off with ease. I stumbled back, losing my balance and toppling to the ground. I groaned in pain, Crowley chuckling.

"Tsk!"I grunted.

Before Crowley could step forward, I slung out my revolver and fired it, taking off half of Crowley's sword with the one bullet. Crowley halted, casually bringing the sword up to his eyes. Crowley sighed, tossing the broken sword away. I stayed on the ground, letting the gun dangle from my trigger finger. Chess and Horn immediately entered the room, concerned that their master was injured.

"Crowley-sama!"Horn cried out.

"I'm fine, Horn,"Crowley said, waving it off. "Thai just cheated is all."

I holstered my revolver, rolling my eyes in grief. "I didn't cheat. Ever hear the expression, 'do what you can with what you got?' Well, I had a gun, and a good way to use it."

"How many times can you rely on that trick, though?"Crowley asked. "You only have so many bullets left."

"True, but you never told me WHO I'm going up against."

Crowley stepped over to me, taking my hand and forcefully bringing me back up. I stumbled up, Crowley supporting me up as he kicked up my cane back to my hand. I brought it down on the ground, leaning against it.

Crowley stood silent for a moment."How about we do this sitting down."

I soon found myself in the Mayor's Office, now converted to Crowley's suite. Chess and Horn were playing chess at another table on the other side of the room. As for me and Crowley, we stood on opposite sides of a table, a cold beer in front of me and a glass of blood in front of Crowley. Looking at that glass of blood, I shuddered slightly knowing that it was now a common sight to see.

"Thanks for the beer,"I said. "I brought a deck of cards if you wanna play a few games."

"Yeah...not how I wanted to spend tonight, but if you insist, then I'll tell you what you want to know,"Crowley said.

I nodded. "We can start with the question I kept asking you when you decided to try and beat me with a wooden sword."

"Oh? What question was that?"

I eyed Crowley with grief. "Who are you training me for? We all know that while I'm not the fastest gunslinger to ever live, I am still pretty lethal. So why the sword now?"

Crowley smirked. I took a gulp from my beer. "Well,"Crowley started. "Remember you telling me about how you were with those kids with swords? Before you got to your boyfriend's shrine?"

Kids with...oh! Those guys. "Yeah...I remember now. The uh...can't remember-"

"The Jap-"

"Japanese Imperial Whatever Army, yeah, I got you."

I shook my head in disbelief. More killing? Now, it ain't even adults, but teenagers-barely crossing the threshold of adulthood. Although, in this world, you had to grow up almost instantly to try and survive.

"Crowley, I ain't gonna be killing no kids."

"You said that about the soldiers but you still did it."

"Yeah! After having a meltdown in front of one of 'em. Don't let me fall, Crowley. Don't make me do this, please."

Crowley shrugged. "You want to know my opinion, Thai?"

Oh, this would go great (sarcasm is evident). I braced myself, taking another few gulps from my beer before leaning my back on the chair. "...hit me...n-not literally, but, yeah, just tell me."

Crowley shifted himself in a more relaxed pose. "Honestly...I feel sorry for you."

I gave him a wry face. He felt sorry for me? "Come again?"

"Sure, you're more pathetic than I thought you would be, but I kind of feel sorry for you,"Crowley smirked.

I rolled my eyes. "Way to be sensitive. What do you mean you're sorry for me?"

"Well, here lies yet another human with 'extraordinary skill' that has fallen under Ferid's radar. Yet again, here's a human now intertwined in Ferid's plan (whatever that may be)."

I had to admit it, Crowley had good intuition. "Are you telling me that you finally have a sense of understanding towards me?"I quipped.

Crowley rolled his eyes. "I still believe you have it too easy."

"You're not too wrong, considering. Still, I'm kind of relieved that you actually feel sorry for me...even if it isn't much."

"Don't you find it curious?"

I scoffed, taking my beer in my hand. "Crowley, I find a _LOT_ of things curious ever since the Great Blaze."

"I mean your immunity."

I shrugged it off. "Sure, but I reckon it has something to do with you lot."

Crowley raised his eyebrow, resting the side of his head against his fist. "Us?"

"Weren't that hard to figure out, Crowley. Once I found out who you two really were, kinda figured you were just trying to save an investment."

"An investment?"

"Yeah! You're already a great swordsman, might as well have a gunslinger while he's at it."

Crowley smiled. "Then you know what he's planning?"

"Pfft. I don't know about all that, but I figured he liked me enough to keep me around for entertainment."

"Oh? But, what if it was all coincidence?"

"Coincidence, Crowley? You're gonna call all this coincidence? Now you're bullshitting me. Now, back to the first conversation, I ain't gonna be killin' no child soldiers. Hell, I won't even be taking them down, so there's no need to train swordplay with me!"

Crowley sighed. "I brought you over here for entertainment. And, personally, I don't want to play anymore card games or tricks."

I chewed on my tongue softly, looking around the room for a moment. Crowley was probably my only true friend in Apocalypse Land. I didn't want to go back to Ferid, especially at night. I pondered hard about what we could do that won't get me seriously injured.

Just then, I spied a vase between us. It was a rather nice vase, nothing on it but its ceramic white. I grinned.

"Crowley, is that yer vase?"I asked.

"Hm? No. It was just here when I got here. Why?"

"Is there anything inside?"

"No. I don't even need it. I just never cared to even-"

I reached over, cutting Crowley off mid-sentence, and swiped the vase down onto the ground. It shattered into multiple shards of white ceramic, Chess and Horn stopping their game and looking at us. Crowley was certainly surprised. I smiled.

"Crowley. Ever since the Great Blaze, I've been running my ass off, worrying about sickness, food, water, death. Now, I'm begrudgingly under Ferid's and your protection from all vampires and Horsemen. I think it's about time I let out all that bottled up rage, don't you think?"

* * *

Crowley watched with a smile as Thai went to town inside the second store of the night. This time, it was an Electrical Hardware Store near Town Hall. Thai was armed with an aluminum bat, swinging violently around, breaking everything around him with ease.

 _What a mundane thing,_ Crowley thought.

 _Sure, he's amusing to watch, but he seems so clueless to his real purpose here._

 _I've seen the disgusting, perverted way Ferid looks at you, Thai. Even when you die, he will not be done with you._


	8. Dawn

"...no...no...NO!"

My eyes shot open, a sharp cry sounding from my throat. I threw my body up in the air, huffing and puffing something violent. I frantically looked around, cold sweat dripping from my forehead. I found myself sitting up from a large, black coffin inside a marble-lined room with red drapes. My mind spun, my body collapsing once more inside the padded coffin. My eyes gazed at the lit ceiling, a chill running up my spine.

I sighed, rubbing my tired eyes. "Christ...why?"

Next to me, I heard a soft chuckle. Crowley's head poked over the side of the coffin, the Thirteenth Progenitor staring down at me with his glowing red eyes. A crescent smile was plastered on his lips, a paralyzingly humored look on his face. I cleared my dry throat, shaking my head back into reality before wiping the sweat off my brow.

"Another nightmare?"Crowley asked. He rested his head on his hand, leaning on the coffin with his other hand stroking my hair.

I was too tired to brush it off, allowing for him to continue.. "Ghosts, more like..."

"What're you doing in that coffin?"

I finally had the urge to shake his hand off my head, his fingers starting to scratch my scalp. I gripped the coffin's edges, standing up slowly. "I...I think I was reading,"I answered slowly. My body started to wake up, still shaky and asleep. "What are you doing here, besides sneaking up on me while I slept?"

Crowley lent me a hand. I took it and stepped out of the coffin, letting out a grunt as Crowley pulled me closer to him. I nearly tumbled into his broad chest, stopping myself with one weak hand. Crowley chuckled again, handling me like I was some doll. He took the hand that I put on his chest, holding me up until I balanced myself.

I looked behind him, seeing a green wine bottle on the counter. "Ooh~! Fancy,"I remarked. I slipped loose of Crowley's grip, stumbling over to the bottle. "A Christmas gift for me?"

Before Crowley could answer, I took the bottle off of his hands. I dug my nails into the cork, tearing it off before raising the bottle's lips to my nose. "Huh!? Wait, Thai, it's—"

I took one whiff of the bottle's contents and immediately gagged. The bottle fumbled around in my hands, my other hand squeezing the cork back into place. Crowley laughed heartily, a bellowed laugh echoing throughout the room. I had to stop myself from vomiting, my hand squeezed around my mouth. I shoved the bottle back into Crowley's hands, bolting towards my jacket. I dug out the inhaler Ferid gave me, shoving the opening to my lips and huffing. I leant myself against the wall, coughing violently while Crowley laughed.

After composing myself, I stood up cautiously.

"Grrrr...I will never get used to that smell,"I grimaced.

Crowley, still laughing, patted me in the back, turning me back around to face him. "I tried warning you. Don't you serve Ferid blood all the time?"

I rolled my eyes. "I never took a giant breath straight like that. Damnit..."

"Hehe."

Crowley reached behind his back, taking out a steel flask that he handed me. I cautiously opened it, instead lofting a faint scent of alcohol to my nose. The familiar scent relaxed me; I took a swig, immediately swallowing the smooth tasting rum.

"Oh, fuck that's good,"I sighed.

Crowley suddenly took back the flask with lightning speed, holding it up above the two of us.

"What the—? What gives!?"I growled, attempting to jump and get it. However, my messed up leg wouldn't allow me to even so much as get a few inches off the air.

"You shouldn't curse a lot, y'know,"Crowley said.

I rolled my eyes, giving out a big huff. "Oh, for fuck's sa—"

Crowley suddenly smacked me in the back of my head. I winced in pain,, rubbing the back of my head. "Aargh...d-darn it all,"I grumbled.

Crowley smiled, still hovering the flask just out of arm's reach. "Stop cursing and maybe I'll give it back,"he taunted.

I was mad, but madness doesn't stop anyone from coming up with a stupid plan.

"Oh, yeah?"I grinned deviously. "Aiight."

I snickered, rolling up my sleeves. Crowley gave me a wry look, his eyebrow raising. I laid both hands on Crowley's shoulders, startling the massive vampire. I quickly hauled myself up off the ground, climbing my way towards the flask. Crowley chuckled, playing along and lifting the flask higher.

"WHOA-HO! What are you thinking!"Crowley guffawed, stumbling back.

I pushed myself higher, my right arm around his head and my left arm outstretched. "Gettin' me a drink, darn it!"

"Haha—no you're not!"

He tossed the flask in the air, rum spilling out from drops to splashes all over the room. My eyes widened, horrified. "NOOO!"

"YES!"Crowley smiled.

He suddenly grabbed me from under, bringing his face up to my chest. Before I could react, he nearly dropped me on the ground, catching me by the back with his right arm with my legs being supported by his left arm in a bridal-sort of carry. I held onto his shoulders, still scared he was going to drop me. I eyed him with frustration, Crowley still grinning.

"You're hopeless,"he smiled.

I rolled my eyes. "That's what happens when you spend the rest of your life as a captive,"I sighed. I gazed over "I'm still pretty thirsty, Crowley."

"Hm. Me, too!"

"GAH!" I started freaking out, nearly thrashing in Crowley's arms to try and get off, but he held on tight. "W-w-wait! I ain't ready!"

Crowley scoffed. "I'm not gonna be drinking you."

"..."

"...yet. Let's go outside. I need a rest."

I gave him a wry look. "Outside? It's, like, hella cold—"

Crowley's sudden malicious glare stopped me mid-sentence.

I coughed. "Er, I mean, 'hecka' cold outside. I'm gonna need my big coat."

"Hm. Okay."

I nodded, Crowley starting to carry me out of the room. I thought he was going to release me, but he just kept walking casually, humming softly to himself. I chewed on my lip, resisting the urge to tell him to—

"Are you gonna...oh, I don't know, let me down?" (Oh, too late).

Crowley looked back down at me. "Oh? I thought you liked it when I hold you."

I gasped; I felt the heat rush to my head, my cheeks growing red. "What! Who told you that?!"

"Ferid did, right after we talked an hour ago,"Crowley innocently answered. "He said that you would talk about how much you wanted me to carry you around and hug you."

I was speechless. I stared at him in horrible disbelief. "I-I did NOT say any of that!"I stuttered, pointing furiously at him. "Besides, I have a boyfriend."

"Right, you did,"Crowley said, still carrying me like a blanket roll. "Ferid also said you still think he's haunting you."

"He IS!"I shouted.

Crowley squeezed my shoulder, making me grunt in pain. "Stop shouting."

I kissed my teeth angrily. "Sorry. But, he is! It ain't a shadow no more. I literally see him dashing from corner to corner."

"How much sleep are you getting?"

I shook my head in wonder. "I—I don't...a few hours a day? Ferid got me doing all sorts of shi...things now."

"Well, then you're probably so tired, you're seeing things,"Crowley said.

"I AM NOT!"

Crowley kicked open my door, which unsurprisingly broke it. I rubbed my eyes, groaning in annoyance.

"I just fixed that,"I sighed.

Crowley stepped over the door, setting me down gently on my feet. "I know, but it didn't look like you did in the first place."

"Eh, whatever. It ain't like someone's gonna rob me."

Crowley looked around my "house" as I walked over to the bookcase on the right wall. I pulled on a few specific books in a specific order, a loud clang suddenly resonating from within the bookcase. It then opened like a door, revealing a hidden storage locker that housed all the guns Ferid let me "borrow but never give back."

I jiggled the lock open, Crowley stepping behind me as I looked for a bigger gun.

"It's weird how they let you do this,"Crowley commented, taking out a gun from the locker.

"Do what?"I asked, grabbing back the gun from Crowley's hand.

"Horde all these guns. It's like you're preparing for war."

I scoffed. "You're the one who told me I needed to prepare to fight, or something. Besides, it ain't like Ferid's gonna be using these any time soon."

Crowley shrugged. "What kinda gun was that, anyways?"

I looked at the pistol Crowley originally had. "Eh, some kinda...revolver thing. I'm not even sure this is a patented gun. I don't know, it has an ivory handle and gold engraving, so I just took it!"

I laughed heartily, remembering how easy it was to just take Ferid's guns at will (even when he was in the same room with me). I placed the pistol back in its correct spot before grabbing—

"My .44. Love this revolver,"I smiled, holstering it. "Hey, remember that movie we watched?"

Crowley rolled his eyes. "I do. You made me watch it four times since this past month."

"Hey! Clint Eastwood played the bejeezus out of that role! Hey—wait! Say the line..."

"No."

I started snickering, closing up the locker and bookcase. "Aw, come on. You say it hecka funny."

Crowley crossed his arms and scowled at me. "I'm not saying it."

I nudged him on the shoulder. "I'll let you drink extra~"

"No."

Crowley paused for a moment, sighing softly. I shrugged it off, thinking he wouldn't ay it as I went over to grab my makeshift stove.

"...'Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?'"

I burst out laughing in nostalgia. You probably couldn't imagine it, but believe me when I tell you that he said it perfectly! I kept laughing as I grabbed my thermos of coffee.

"Ha ha,"Crowley sarcastically laughed. "Can we go now?"

I stifled my laughing (or, rather, attempted to) as I put on my coat. "Yeah. Come on. We're taking Ferid's car."

"He'll let you use it?"

"Pfft. You gonna tell him?"

* * *

The two quickly departed the makeshift house on Ferid's yard, heading out towards the nearest exit to rest in peace. Thai's door was still flat on the ground, exposing the house to any and all trespassers. But, Thai had a point; no one was going to rob him of anything. Sure, he had food that the kids could potentially steal, but the ones who frequented Ferid's residence knew better than to steal from Ferid's foul-mouthed servant...until now.

Mika slid inside the room, undetected previously by both Thai and Crowley. He made sure to practice how to control his breathing, doing his best to be undetected by not only those two previously mentioned, but even from Ferid himself. He was done being caged like sheep. Now was the time to finally get out.

He darted towards the bookcase, climbing on it and rapidly shifting the books he saw Thai use previously. The bookcase opened, exposing the gun locker once more. He was just about to grab a gun, until he realized that there was still a lock on the door. Mika, too far to walk away now, started to try and force the door open. He pulled with his entire body on it desperately, the fear of Thai, Crowley, or even Ferid walking in on him slowly creeping up on his mind.

The lock wouldn't budge, the door staying closed. Mika gave up, dropping to the ground, cursing himself.

Mika used to not understand; Thai had all these guns and the rumored skill to shoot fast enough to kill any vampire, but he never sought out to shoot his way to freedom. Seeing Thai interact with Crowley like they were friends finally gave him the method to Thai's madness: he enjoyed being treated like a pet. There was no reason for him to escape, because he enjoyed being fed—he enjoyed being Ferid's entertainment. Seeing Thai laugh and smile with those two brutish monsters made Mika cringe.

He pounded on that metal door. There was a time when he thought those smiles and laughter were all just a facade—another dangerous game that Mika was already playing—but, he saw no hint, no strategy, and no plan to Thai's actions. Thai didn't want to escape anymore—he wanted to stay.

Mika stood up, red with fury and hate. He kicked the door one final time, the metal panels and walls shaking and rattling. Mika would just have to find another—no!

The lock fell suddenly into Mika's hands. He looked down at it, seeing the end of the shackle chipped away, almost as if someone was rubbing on it.

It didn't matter, Mika tossed the lock back inside the locker, looking inside to find a gun he could use to defend themselves.

Yet another problem arose—most of the guns Thai had were rifles and shotguns. Not only were they too large and powerful for him, but even hiding them under his clothes would be impossible. Mika looked around, only a pair of brass knuckles and a few blades, but no pistols. But, after another frantic glance, an ivory handle caught his eye.

* * *

"You gotta bite so damn hard!?"

"Only because you were moving too much."

"Yeah...cause you bite so damn hard."

I threw my bag back inside my house before following Crowley back into Ferid's Mansion. I kept a blue sash pressed firmly against the base of my neck, wincing at the sharp pain Crowley left when he decided to feed off of me.

"That was definitely more than ten seconds, Crowley,"I groaned.

"Yeah, well, you said I could take more if I said the line."

"..." I sighed. "Yes...I did say that."

"I know. That's why I did it."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. I'm gonna get a bite to eat. You coming?"

"Eh...nah. I think I'll just sleep in that coffin you were sleeping in."

"V-vampires sleep?" His statement caught me off guard.

"Sometimes. Think of it as a 'break' from immortality."

Crowley waved me off, myself heading towards Ferid's Kitchen. Moments later I was eating a hastily-made sandwich, walking back towards where Crowley was sleeping. Even in a vampire's lair, I still had a fear of being alone, like something's gonna—

"AAAHHH!"

A cold hand made me spin back around, nearly choking on my sandwich. All I saw was Ferid standing right in front of me, cheekily giggling.

"Really, Thai? A sandwich?"Ferid chuckled.

I soon realized I was holding out my sandwich like it was a sword at Ferid. I sighed, taking a bite out of it. "You scared the shit out of me, Ferid."

He smiled, cockily leaning on his hip. "Had fun with Crowley?"

"Yeah...heard you've been telling him that I 'like' him."

"Hm? Just rumors~"

I rolled my eyes. "Look, Ferid, y'know I had a thinking, and I need you to hear me out, please."

"Fine-fine-fine! Let's do it in my Study."

Ferid turned around and started walking. I begrudgingly followed him, thinking of all I thought about for the past month. I wasn't sure he would go through with my request, but—

"I-I quit."

Ferid stopped walking. He turned back around, giving me a blank look. I choked on my next sentence, urging myself to keep speaking.

"Ferid, it's been good and all, but I need to go."

"Go?"

"Home. Friggin' U-S-of A."

Ferid laughed out loud, his laugh echoing across the entire mansion. He was laughing hysterically, covering his face with his hand. My temper rose.

"Look, you haven't really been feeding off of me, and to be frank, I don't even do shit 'round here. You ain't got me killing anyone since dem five soldiers, so what use am I here? Just let me leave, man!"

Ferid stopped laughing, still giving me his toothy crocodile grin. "You don't want to stay here anymore?"

"Hell no! Look, I won't forget the gratitude you guys gave me—Lord knows you could've just straight up killed me whenever—but, I need to go home."

Ferid stopped smiling. His toothy grin twisted upside-down. His eyes gave me a cold, dead glare. I was left speechless, stumbling back as Ferid approached me. My heart started beating faster, Ferid's cold hand suddenly lifting up my chin. His red eyes froze me in place.

He gave off a deep sigh. "They grow up so fast~"

"W-w-what?"

"Of course I'll let you go home!"

Did I just hear him right? Was I going to go home?

"Thank you so much, I'll–"

"But, on one condition~!"

 _C-condition?_


	9. A Plan

I fiddled with the broken lock, sitting myself on the table inside my house with a solemn sigh. I could barely think; my fingers kept toying around with the steel lock. I felt its cool, metallic surface glide over my fingertips, smelled its rusted scent. Tears welled up in my eyes, my tongue pressing against the tip of my canines.

Mika really did it—he went even so far as to steal my damn gun without me noticing. Now, it was only a matter of time until the inevitable happens...and I get stuck with the blame.

I heard a pair of footsteps behind me. Grief turned to rage. I growled, turning around before chucking the lock right at Crowley. He caught it without problem, but the surprisingly concerned look on his face made me dial back my anger a bit.

"Why!?"I grunted. I nearly fell off my stool.

"Because Ferid told me to,"he answered with full confidence. He tossed the lock behind him, sitting down on the table next to me.

I scowled at him, gritting my teeth. "You just let a whole bunch of kids die for Ferid's sick amusement, Crowley! Where the fuck's the sense in that!?"

I slammed my fist on the table, kicking back my chair before stepping away from him. Crowley sighed, shrugging his shoulders.

"I see your point, Thai-kun, but instead of grabbing your guns and intercepting the kids to stop them, you're arguing with me,"Crowley said. "Ferid cut you a deal, didn't he? What was it?"

I stomped my boot on the ground, biting my tongue. Crowley, too, had a point, and he knew exactly what Ferid told me was going to happen in the next few hours. That idea didn't sit too well with me; I sat back down in frustration, pulling up a chair. "Uh...well, they're gonna blame me for the attempted escape, and I'll have to try to not to get myself killed by volunteering to infiltrate the place that they're gonna keep all the survivors at...if there are any."

"And?"

I rubbed my hands together, their cold, rough palms and fingers rubbing against each other. "...(I am so...screwed)...instead of cleaning up Ferid's mistake, I'm supposed to do something else for him. I'll escape, not do the Queen's bidding, and head off to a rendezvous point somewhere down in Kanagawa that'll get me far away from here."

Crowley's eyes lit up in shock. "Far away? As in 'away from Tokyo?'"

"No! As in 'I'm gettin' the hell outta the Titanic before it fuckin' sinks!'"

Crowley smirked at me, leaning back on his seat. "You really think he's going to let you leave just like that?"

I shrugged. "Even then, I'll have another shot at hiding from you guys in Japan until I find a damn boat to get me out of here."

"You know I'll hunt you down."

"Y'know...I still kinda find that hard to believe."

I stepped over to my liquor cabinet, taking out a beer before chugging it. Ferid was one mighty—MIGHTY—bastard! First, he feeds off of kids, and now he's killing them for shits and giggles? And, I have to take the blame for it?!

There was no way I was going to survive here for much longer. My one ticket out of here was Ferid, but Crowley had a point: what if telling me that I could go home was another sick, twisted game of Ferid's?

I tossed the bottle to the ground, belching something fierce. I looked back at Crowley, myself dazed and full of regret. I was going to die soon, either by sword or fangs. It was only a matter of a few hours until Ferid starts to stalk them, so I at least had that much time to figure out on the what the hell I was going to do in between.

"...I'm screwed, Crowley,"I said, my voice shaking. "I ain't never been this scared in my life."

Crowley stood up, keeping his unwavering expression of confidence. "Get a grip, Thai. Ferid kept you alive for this long, it won't make any sense for him to just 'off' you on such ridiculous terms."

He gripped my arms, pulling me closer to him. "What're you doing?"I grumbled.

"Just calming you down."

"Yeah? Well, don't!"

I started pushing him off me, but Crowley was quick to tighten his grip around me. I struggled harder, his arms wrapping around my head. "Get off me!,"I grunted, backing up and around the room, trying to wrestle out of Crowley's grip. I heard him sigh. Crowley suddenly wrapped his arms around my torso from behind. He easily lifted me off my feet, lifting me up high in the air with my eyes facing the ground.

It was as if time stood still for that brief second, until the painful fall on that wooden table knocked me back into sense. Crowley threw me onto the table, looking down over me. I winced in pain, my hand pressing against my lower back. "God...dammit...Crowley,"I grunted.

Crowley gazed at me in silence, the two of us at a standstill. I sat myself up on the table, incredulously eyeing Crowley standing just in front of me. I knew living with vampires wouldn't be the best thing in the world, but I never imagined it could end up this bad. However, even after what he had done to the Gun Locker's lock, he was probably the most human of them all. I could always assume that every vampire I encountered was the same cold, ruthless monster I assumed them to be, but not Crowley. Ferid was a hit and miss at times, but Crowley was the nicer and more caring of the two.

I chewed on my lip. There was one thing I wanted to do, but every instinct and nerve in my body told me to stay still. Still, I couldn't shake it out of my mind.

"Crowley..."I breathed. "You think I'll be all right?"

He stared blissfully at me, taking a moment to answer me. "Of course. You lived this long in such bizarre circumstances, I'm sure you can find your way out of this one."

"Yeah...well, I guess I got a knack for figuring shit out on the fly."

"Maybe show them one of your magic tricks again?"

I scoffed, remembering the first (and only) time I used a magic trick to kill two vampires trying to kidnap me. I noticed, too, it had been a long time since I had done any magic.

"Only got...probably an hour until shit hits the fan. Lot of things can be done in just an hour" I looked back at Crowley, determined to make a request of him. He looked back at me, stepping closer as if he knew what I was going to ask him.

"...if you're gonna ask me something, do it."

I gave him an embarrassed smile, my cheeks turning a little red. I slowly dropped my feet back down onto the ground, stepping towards Crowley. I placed my hand on his chest, my hand finding its way around his jacket and towards his thick, chest. It was cool to the touch; I clenched my teeth, covering my gasp. We exchanged glances, Crowley seemingly confused.

I felt a tightness in my chest; my hands clenched onto his lapel, bringing his face down to mine. Crowley didn't resist, allowing myself to pull him even closer to me. I closed my eyes, my lips soon pressing themselves against Crowley's.

* * *

It was too awful for words. Tears dripped down from my eyes, the crude scent of blood choking me. I took my hat off my head, my eyes gazing at the carnage I found myself surrounded by. My knees shook, my head spun, a faint ringing in my ears that muted the outside world. There was so much blood.

A cold hand suddenly shook me. "Hey!"

I turned to see the Queen herself, Krul Tepes. "I...I didn't—"

"It was your gun,"she growled fiercely, her hand starting to crush my shoulder. I gasped, her sudden strength forcing me down onto my knees. I cried out in pain. "I should kill you!"

"Wait! I can—"

Before I could suggest anything, her hand suddenly grabbed my neck, wringing it violently. I couldn't scream, my hands grabbing at her's and desperately trying to pry her off of me. I choked and gagged, trying to pry myself free, but she kept crushing my throat. I was starting to see black, until I glimpsed Ferid stroll just behind her.

"Krul,"he said with a smile. "It wasn't all his fault, but he can help."

She kissed her teeth angrily, throwing me on the ground and releasing her grip. I gasped for air, coughing up spit on the ground. However, there was no rest; her boot kicked me onto my back. She pinned me down, her sole pressing down right on my injured knee. Her hand reached for my gun before I could, swiftly cocking it back and pointing it at my head. She glared daggers at me. "How can he HE—of all people—fix this mess?"

"Well, he's human, for one,"Ferid chimed in.

"And?"

I got enough breath to speak, saying, "And...whoever they are, I can find 'em."

Her eyebrow raised. "How?"

"He...you said he got picked up? By who?"

She eyed me suspiciously, suddenly de-cocking the gun and tossing it to the side. "By a convoy just outside Kyoto. Why?"

Her heel started stepping down on the side of my knee. I grunted. "Christ...they're heading to the only part of Japan that WEREN'T as infested by both Horsemen and Vampires as I thought them to be: Tokyo—where I should have kept my ass at."

"Hmph. So, you're going to go there and steal back a kid?"

"I know none of you can get inside with them fangs and red eyes, but me? I can get him without raising alarms."

She scoffed. "You? You're really going to break into a human camp and steal back a kid? Coming from the same person crying in his sleep after killing those human soldiers?"

"Yeah...well, this time it doesn't really look like I have much of a choice, now does it?"

My heart beat like crazy with anticipation. The three of us fell silent, surrounded by hooded vampires carrying away the dead children. Krul sneered, stepping off my knee. She turned to Ferid, eyeing him, too, before stomping off.

I sighed, Ferid helping me back up. Ferid patted me on the back. In sheer frustration, however, I punched him in the gut, Ferid not even fazed. "Ho-ho! Something wrong?"Ferid chuckled.

"E...everything."

"So, what's your plan now? Did you say your goodbyes to Crowley?"

I scoffed, pushing him away before grabbing my pistol. I cocked it back and forth multiple times, seeing that the toss didn't break the gun before holstering it. I ignored Ferid's constant asking of Crowley, marching out of that godforsaken place and all the way back to Ferid's Mansion. Ferid promptly followed, whistling dixie along the way.

"Crowley's already gone ahead to get me a helicopter,"I finally said. "I assume you also have a way to get me out of Japan once this thing's done?"

"Of course~"Ferid smiled.

I soon got to my house, taking off the tailored clothes Ferid had me always wear. I tossed the hat, going inside my room and reaching inside my closet, taking out a garment bag before setting it on my bed. Ferid leaned against the doorway as I unzipped the bag, Ferid twirling my hat around his index finger.

"Your plan is to infiltrate their city?"Ferid asked.

"No, too risky."

I pulled out my old clothes, a nostalgic time of a life once peaceful. I hastily threw it on.

"My plan,"I explained, "is to intercept them on the road. Your boys are gonna take me just to the edge of Tokyo on the only road accessible via jeeps. I get to them, we talk, I give them yer...whatever the hell this is!" I held up the black folder Ferid had given me before. "...and then, it's off to that plane in Kanagawa you have, right?"

Ferid nodded with a smile. I shook my head in disbelief, putting on the thick jacket I wore when I was out in the Wasteland. I stuffed the folder inside the tear inside the jacket I called "a pocket." I shrugged, my hands slapping down onto my thighs. "Can't say it's been a pleasure,"I said.

"Wha–? Seriously?"

I walked out of the room, nearly shoving Ferid away. I went to my gun locker, taking off my rig and throwing it inside. Ferid looked on from behind.

"No guns?"Ferid asked.

"I just need a new one—or, rather, an old one."

I took out the Mare's leg and Trench Gun, stepping outside of the house without even bothering to close the gun locker.

"You look like you're in such a hurry,"Ferid commented. "How about—"

"Stop!"

Ferid closed his mouth, looking somewhat surprised. "What?"

"Just stop,"I scoffed, stepping out of the door. "Goodbye, Lord Ferid."

Later that morning, I hurriedly made it to the city's hidden airfield. There, a military helicopter was getting ready to take off, Crowley waiting for me just beyond the landing pad. He wore an uneasy look at the sight of me. I sighed as I stepped up to him, unable to look him in the eyes.

"You, uh, got my gun?"I sheepishly asked.

Crowley handed a familiar black rig to me, my old Ruger still attached to it, along with Haru's katana. I took it with both hands, wrapping the rig around my waist.

"I guess this is it, then. At long last."

"You'll be fine. Go. We'll see each other soon."

I bit back a smile, looking at him in those glowing red eyes. "Nah. I'm gone."


	10. A Slight Change in Plans

Endless ruins of a once proud nation stood before me. What was once supposed to be my new home turned into a fanatical nightmare. Even after all this time, the vast emptiness of the wasteland still wrought an unnerving anxiety within me. There were no screams, no roars, not even the cawing of birds. It was just solemn silence. Just. Silence.

"..."

"Hey!"

I looked behind me, three vampires stepping out of the recently landed helicopter. One of them stepped forward, handing me a plain white envelope with my name handwritten on it in cursive. I took it, taking out my knife and opening it.

"Lord Ferid commanded me to give you this,"said the vampire.

"Uh-huh..."

I started reading the letter he gave me, sheathing my knife as the vampire kept talking. "Ferid wrote detailed instructions for you to follow. We're here to make sure your job is done."

I carefully read the letter, nodding at the very first instruction. I looked back up at the vampire, cocking my eyebrow. I tried holding back an amused snicker.

"And you're extremely sure I have to follow these instructions?"I asked.

The vampire scoffed. "Dumb dog! Of course you have to! What kind of idiot are you?!"

Annoyed, I merely shrugged. "Well, this here first instruction is quite confusing to me."

"Let me see."

The vampire annoyingly swiped the letter from my hand. He brought it up to his eyes, his red eyes darting from left to right and back as he read each line of instruction. Suddenly, his eyes widened.

"Wait—"

I quickly drew my gun and fan-fired it, shooting all three vampires in the head. The two behind the first vampire immediately withered away to ash. The first vampire fell down, the bullet merely incapacitating him. I stepped over quietly, my gun still trained on the vampire, scooping up the letter before rereading the first instruction.

"'Step One,'"I read aloud. "'Kill your escorts.' Told ya' it was confusing...but if you insist on me following instructions..."

"...you—!"

I quickly killed him, the crack of the gun echoing into the distant land. Cockily, I twirled the gun around my index finger before holstering it, fixing my rig afterwards.

"Okay, let's see...blah-blah-blah...only one of them knows...a familiar face? There's only so many people that I remem—oh! No, it couldn't...maybe...I did tell him that."

The road that the vampires tracked the jeep convoy at was only a few blocks away, the convoy itself last seen just ten miles out. I quickly hurried myself down towards the rendezvous point, sticking to the walls of buildings like glue in the hopes that the shots didn't attract any nearby Horsemen of John. The last thing I needed was to be maimed and eaten by one of those disgusting things.

I found a clear intersection free of cars and trucks, perfect for catching the jeep convoy. I hid inside a derelict building with a clear view of the street.

"Aiight you sons of bitches. Where you at?"

"...have patience."

My body jolted itself against the wall, my hand jerking my pistol out its holster. My heart jolted, my eyes darting to a dark corner of the room. My teeth gritted against each other; I knew who it was.

"Dammit...I knew it,"I grunted.

I kept my gun trained on the figure as it stepped out into the light, revealing itself to be—

"Haru...goddammit,"I muttered. "Are you a ghost?"

"Haru" shrugged, keeping a sarcastic smirk plastered on his face. "What do you think?"

"Tsk! I ain't got time for this. Leave me be."

"Huh? First, you cheat on me, and now, you don't have time for me?"

I rolled my eyes in anger, my hand squeezing the butt of my gun. "I wasn't thinking right, okay! I thought I was gonna get killed!"

"And that gives you an excuse?"

"It's not an excuse!"

"Then what is it?"

"I DON'T—"

I nearly fired my gun at Haru, the "ghost" still lingering in front of me. My mind was drowning in thoughts, my head unable to think clearly. Haru was visibly mad.

"...you don't understand."

"No, I don't. If you were killed, we would finally be together again. How could I even begin to forgive you for this?"

I stayed silent, shaking my head and crossing my arms while keeping an eye out in the road. I tried ignoring Haru, hoping he would disappear.

"...you do want to be with me again...right?"

I kept my mouth shut, trying my damnest to focus.

"...did you even—"

"I did—er, do,"I finally said. "It's complicated."

"What's complicated? The fact that I'm dead?"

"Well, yeah!"

"But when you die, you'll be with me again."

"...maybe."

The room fell silent. We eyed each other again, only, I wasn't comfortable staring at him in the eyes. I averted my gaze after just a quick glance, staring just at his feet. Haru stepped forward.

"No. You don't think you'll be with me again,"Haru said.

"I done too much that can't be forgiven."

"You've given up."

I rubbed my eyes, taking in a deep breath. I urged my eyes up, gazing softly at Haru. He was just like how I remembered seeing him all those years ago, long before the Apocalypse.

"If only I died right beside you, yeah? Maybe, we still would've been together."

I turned away from him, slowly stepping outside the building. I found a large piece of rubble on the ground, sitting down on it without a heavy sigh. Looking out towards the empty street, I felt a deep emptiness inside me. My shoulders slouched over my body, my head hanging low.

Haru sat down next to me, placing his hand on my thigh. He sighed softly, retracting his hand.

"What am I doing with my life?"I asked Haru.

"I get it. You're doing what it takes to survive."

"Yeah, but the cost...after this is done, I'm heading home. I need air, I need...I need to go far away from here. From everything."

"Even me?"

I bit my lip, looking up at him. "Well, if you are a ghost, how 'bout you just haunt my ass all the way home?"

We both giggled amusingly. For a brief second, it almost felt normal to laugh again. Then, I remembered what kind of six-foot hole I dug myself in, my shame returning to me. I wiped my eyes, our laughter dying down.

"I was thinking maybe I can erect some kind of symbolic shrine for you. A proper memorial for the special someone."

Haru raised his eyebrow. "Now you're just trying to make me forget how you cheated on me."

"Pfft! I was gonna do it either way. Crowley was just...the spur of the moment. An accident."

"Right...so, how was he?"Haru suddenly asked.

"Huh?"

"Crowley?"

A surprised scoff jumped out of my throat. I turned my face away from him, my cheeks reddening. "Uh, Crowley? Really? You wanna hear about that?"

"Yeah, I wanna know."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "If you were real, you'd be kicking my ass up and down this block."

"Well, I'm dead, so I can't do much. Just tell me!"

"Gah! Well...ur...oof..."

"Oh?"

"Ur...well, he's, you know...a good kisser."

"Did he bite you?"

My head slowly shook back and forth. "Surprisingly no, but he still liked to keep a firm grip."

"Firm grip?"

"He was very powerful—"

"Okay! I heard enough!"

As if on cue, I heard a soft rumbling in the distance. I sighed, shaking my head as I got up. I fixed my hair, taking one last glance at Haru sitting perfectly still on the rubble.

"Uh, I hope we can talk more...later?"

Haru shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe. Who knows."

He faded into nothing. I closed my eyes, gripping the hilt of the katana strapped to my rig. A bittersweet smile formed between my lips, a tired scoff erupting from my dry throat.

"Damn Apocalypse,"I muttered with a smile.

The roar of what I knew to be the convoy grew louder, and soon I could see them barreling towards me in the distance. I knew at least one of the people from the convoy knew someone was to meet them en route, but accidents could happen. I needed to time this just right if I didn't want to be left on the side of the road. Freedom was so close.

They quickly approached, their speed just a hair's width down from outright floored to the max. I stepped towards the middle of the road, my heart racing. With shaky knees and a trembling arm, I stood in the middle of the road as the jeeps were just two blocks away.

Without a moment's hesitation, I quickly drew my gun and fired it three times in the air.

"STOP!"

Luckily, they braked, the sound of tires rapidly screeching to a stop echoing throughout the city. I stood my ground, clenching my teeth and fists as they skidded to a complete stop, the lead car stopping just a few feet away from me.

I let out a relaxed sigh, wiping my brow as the doors of the jeep kicked open. A man appeared, pointing at me with his gloved hand. "YOU CRAZY BASTARD!

I merely rolled my eyes. "Oh good, you speak English."

Another face appeared from the opposite door. My eyes widened, the face being—

"Guren! Is that your head I see there!?"

"Yes. I remember you..."

"Wow. You've grown,"I said, stepping over to the jeep.

"You, too. You don't look worse for wear."

"Yeah, well, don't let these here rugged looks fool you. It's been...a long...time."

He rolled his eyes. "Look, if you're looking to finally head to safety, I suggest you—"

"No. I'm fine where I'm at, but I'm looking to make a trade for some food."

His eyebrow raised. "A trade?"

"I got some dirt on our fanged friends from Kyoto. Seems to me that I might know a few things that you fine folk might not know about."

If what Ferid said was true in that letter, then it had to be Guren who was his confidential partner in crime. In fact, he stepped down from the jeep. I scoffed as I stepped back, the Lieutenant Commander stepping towards me. He said something in Japanese to his men, his force staying behind while we stepped out towards a safe distance.

"How the hell are you taller than me?"

He only glared daggers at me. "You must be Ferid's messenger. What happened?"

"Pfft. Shoulda took your damn offer is what happened. Too much happened in our time apart, now I'm stuck playing servant...until our exchange, that is." I took out the black folder from my jacket pocket, handing it to Guren. "After our little meeting is done, I'm gonna go on permanent vacation back home to where I belong and far away from all this crap I've been swimming in."

"Hmph." He flipped through the folder. "Where have I heard that one before?"

"Oh look, you've grown a sense of humor, too. Are we good?"

Guren took his time looking through the folder. I tried getting a peek at what was inside, but he snapped it shut.

"What was in that folder, anyways?"I asked. "Is it about that kid you saved."

"None of your business,"he said. "And, yes, we're good. I'm sure we should give you some of our rations to make this exchange look real."

"Yeah, as if it weren't shady enough."

"Stay here—wait! Put down your weapons."

"Wha—? Seriously?"

"There's no way I'm turning my back to you. I know your abilities, gunman. Disarm yourself."

"Urgh...fine. Life's precious, ain't it?"

I begrudgingly took off my rig, disarming myself of my gun, knife, and sword. I tossed it over at Guren's feet, the LTC finally turning around and walking back to his convoy. I took out a flask from my jacket, drinking the last of the alcohol left inside.

I was so close to getting out of here; all that was left to do was get some barely edible army rations and then head out to Kanagawa and then home. I would finally be free of all this nonsense.

Guren finally came back with a small backpack. He tossed it over to where my rig was, his hands placing themselves against his hip. I gave him a cheeky smirk before grabbing my rig first.

"Y'know, Guren-san,"I said as I quickly buckled my rig together around my waist. "It goes without saying that our mutual bastard-of-an-accomplice isn't one to be trusted. That thing is a snake. Best thing to do with snakes is cut off their head and leave the corpse to rot."

"Is that what you're gonna do?"

"...you're the one with the longer sword."

I clapped my hands together, grabbing the bag up from the ground. I took one last look of the world around me, shaking my head.

"What a God. Damn. Shame."

I held out my hand to Guren for a handshake. Guren took it, keeping that straight look on his face.

"Well, I guess this is—"

The loud crack of a gunshot rang throughout the city. The air in my lungs was knocked out of me. Something tore into my abdomen, knocking me off my feet. The next thing I felt was the asphalt on my back and a searing pain surging throughout my belly. I couldn't even scream, much less gasp for air.

Guren, his eyes wide, looked back behind him. I craned my neck up, looking past Guren and at whoever the hell just shot me. I placed my hand against the bleeding wound in my belly.

I couldn't believe it. Just in front of the convoy was a black-haired, green-eyed boy with MY revolver pointed at me. I couldn't help but laugh in disbelief.

"Well, dip me in dog shit!"I coughed. "A kid?!"

He roared something at me that I couldn't make out, but from what Guren said next, I knew I was being double-crossed.

"Y-You!?"Guren gasped. "You're working for them!?"

I was utterly horrified. "Y...you devil! You—AARGH!"

Guren stomped on right where my wound was. I let out a bloodcurdling scream, the LTC saying something back to his comrades before running off. He left me, the jeeps immediately firing back up and driving away, leaving me to choke in their dust and my blood.

"GAH! GUREN! COME BACK! NOO! AAARGGHHH! YOU SNAKE!"

My mind was racing. I was so close! How could have this happened! I was outgunned...by a fucking kid!?

The last thing I remember before my vision faded to black was the sound of quiet footsteps...and an unmistakable laugh.

* * *

His eyes were closed, blood pouring out of his lips and abdomen, his hand bathed in blood. He was barely alive, but with each breath, his soul was slowly leaving his body. It would only be a few minutes until Thai would die.

Crowley and Ferid looked down at Thai's body, the former with a frown.

"He's gonna die, soon,"Crowley sighed. He crouched down, taking off his glove before wiping blood off of Thai's hand. He licked his finger. "Still tastes like a drunk."

Ferid paced slowly around Thai's body, licking his lips with a fierce smile plastered on his face. His eyes were like a rattlesnake's peering down at Thai's face.

"What a shame. I honestly didn't think little Yuu-chan would shoot him like that."

"You killed his friends,"Crowley said. "Seeing Thai probably made him think that he was here to steal him back."

"Hmm...perhaps. Oh well!"

"Huh? You're just gonna leave him like this?"Crowley asked.

"Of course not,"Ferid chimed. "He's still a valuable asset to me. Maybe if you kissed him, he'll wake back up!"

Crowley sighed. "First, he's not a princess, and second, he's not asleep. He's dying."

"Fine-fine. Sound more concerned, Crowley-kun. He's your friend, after all."

"Do you have a way to save him, or not? We can't move him the way he is now."

Ferid softly hummed, reaching in his pocket before taking out a small vial of blood. He swirled the blood just above Crowley, the latter's interests suddenly perked.

"Who's blood is that?"

"Our Second Progenitor, Urd Geales. Before he left, he said he saw some interest in Thai. So, I told him that one day, if Thai proved himself worthy, I'll turn him."

"And, you think he's 'worthy?'"

"Hmm...maybe not, but I'll have another friend for eternity, again!"

Crowley looked back down at Thai, resting his head on his hand. He sighed one more time, taking the vial from Ferid.

"Well, let's wake him up."


	11. Country Road

The light...

I can see it...

It's so...beautiful.

With heavy legs that trudged through the dark, I reached out towards it with bloody hands. It was like wallowing through a cold, muddy swamp, the darkness weighing down each step. Blood rushed from the gunshot to my abdomen, but I couldn't feel it. In fact, I didn't feel anything. No pain, no anger, just the warm, inviting light that stood just in front of me. It was calling out to me, my eyes almost being blinded by its divine radiance.

"Haru...I'm coming. Wait for me for just a little longer."

It was so close; I could practically touch the light. I smiled, a tired, exasperated sigh escaping my throat.

In just a few more steps, all the pain and all the misery in my life would be gone. God has given me a blank slate, and he opened those pearly gates to me. I laughed with joy, tears streaming down my cheeks.

And there, I saw him—Haru. Bathed in golden light and dressed in a formal kimono and hakama, he smiled softly at me with his glowing eyes and pink lips. He held out his hand toward me, just an arm's reach away.

"Haru...my love..."I breathed.

"I told you we would meet again, Thai-kun. Hurry."

With the last ounce of strength I had, I grabbed his hand. It was finally over. We gazed deeply into each other's eyes, our smiles from ear to ear. Haru lifted me up with one pull out of the murky darkness and into the light. I stepped onto it, my boot stepping on what felt like gold or marble.

With one foot in the light and one in the dark, I kept my eyes locked onto Haru. I needed to apologize to him. I needed to tell him how much I love him.

"Haru, I—"

Before I could get my left foot out of the dark, something broke free from the murky darkness below. It wrapped itself around my arm. Haru's eyes widened, a horrified gasp of shock escaping his lips. I turned around, keeping my other hand wrapped around Haru's.

I looked at what wrapped itself around my arm. It was like a stream of congealed blood, erupting from the darkness and coiling itself continuously around my arm. I screamed in terror, more blood shooting itself out of the darkness, wrapping around my legs, torso, and arms.

"What is—"

They started to pull, nearly tearing me away from Haru's grip.

"Thai!"

"Haru! NO!"

Haru grabbed onto my hand with both of his, desperately clinging onto me as my body was being dragged back into the darkness. I gripped his hand with all my strength, my knuckles turning white.

"Wait! NO—PLEASE!"

"Thai!"

The blood started to drag me even harder than before. Our grip broke; it threw me outside the light and back into the darkness...until Haru caught my hand. He held onto the light with his other hand, holding onto both for dear life.

"Thai! Please, don't let go!"he cried.

"Grr...it's too strong, dammit!"

"Thai!"

"Haru, I love—"

Our grip finally broke for the last time. Haru could only watch in complete horror as the blood wrapped around me, the darkness engulfing me in its giant maw.

I screamed his name, my vision engulfed in darkness little by little until pitch black, the deafening sound of what sounded like the crashing of waves silenced by an ever growing ring. Darkness leached into my throat, tasting of iron and forcing its way down my gullet. My bones felt like glass, shattering over and over again, my muscles spasming and rupturing. My heart beat so fast it felt like it was going to explode. It was like I was dying all over again...

* * *

...except, I didn't.

That high-pitched ringing in my ears took over every sense in my body. Suddenly, it started to die down, and with it, the pain in my body. My bones felt solid, my joints and muscles relaxing.

I could breath again, cool air filling my lungs once more. My head still hurt, but my eyelids started to slowly open. A bright, hazy light filled my vision ever so slowly; I slowly gasped for air.

My vision cleared up in just a matter of minutes, the first thing I saw being my hand up in the air pointed towards the sky. I felt the asphalt on my back, the cool air brushing past my face. I slowly got up, the sun blinding me. I put up my hand against the sun, shielding my eyes. My mind was still racing after what I just experienced, my heart...wait...

I clutched my chest. I felt the air expand and deflate my lungs, felt the ground with the tips of my fingers, but I couldn't feel the beating of my heart. Something was wrong.

"What is...what?"

"Oh, good, you're awake."

I jumped and screamed, turning my head to see both Crowley and Ferid stand just behind me. I sighed, facepalming myself in the head. I remembered it all now. I placed my hand on my abdomen, feeling cold skin and muscle through a large, singed hole in my clothes.

"What happened? How am I alive?"

Crowley squatted down, passing me my flask. "Here, drink. You must be thirsty."

"Oh, thanks. Y-you're a good friend, Crowley."

My lips were dry, an overbearing thirst becoming clear to me. I quickly opened the flask, raising its lips to mine and quickly drinking whatever was inside down. I thought it was alcohol at first, tasting strong notes of rum, until it quickly tasted like strong iron. I couldn't handle it.

I quickly spat whatever was inside my mouth out onto the ground, my eyes widening in horror. I looked at the flask, pouring the rest of its contents onto the ground.

"Blood...?"

Another strong feeling wrenched itself in my gut. I curled up, my body turning over on the ground with both arms and legs on the ground. Something inside was changing inside me, painful at first, but then like it was energizing me.

"You didn't like it? I told you he looks like the kind who would drink a child's blood, Crowley-kun,"Ferid smiled.

I looked at him in disgust. "Ferid. What. Did. You. Do?"

"Why, saved you, of course~!"

My stomach felt sick, realizing what that dream was really. "No...no..."

"Thai,"Crowley said, Ferid also squatting down beside Crowley. "Remember Urd Geales? Ferid made a deal with him to turn you into a vampire when Ferid saw fit. So, Ferid made me give you some of Urd's blood to you just before you died."

"It was super close, too,"Ferid chuckled. "Your soul was just one second out from entirely leaving your body. You were so close to dying, I could hear you take that last breath—I mean, seriously. Almost ALL your blood was just spilling out from that gunshot, I didn't even think you were still alive. I thought we just spilled some of Urd's blood on a dead corpse. You must have been...Thai, are you okay? You look kinda angry, like you wanna punch something."

(I...was a vampire.)

They turned me...just a second from death? Seriously?

"So close...I was...he was..."

My bloodied hands trembled, my eyes wide open in terror. I clenched my teeth, anger seething uncontrollably. My eyes slowly laid their beaming glare at Ferid.

"Aah...aah...AAAARRGHHHHHH!"

I jumped at Ferid, punching him square in the jaw. Ferid fell to the ground; I quickly pinned him down to the ground, eyes red with anger. I started to ground and pound him, letting loose all the fury and hatred cultivated for four years, all the misery, torment, and humiliation I had to live through, only to be be made a monster.

"You demon! YOU SNAKE!"I roared, continually beating Ferid. Crowley grabbed me from behind, tearing me away from Ferid. "I'MA RIP YOUR HEAD OFF!"

"Thai! Calm—"

I elbowed Crowley in the gut, breaking free of his grip. "YOU! OF ALL PEOPLE!"

I grabbed Crowley, kneeing him in the gut. Crowley grunted in pain, but punched me across the face. I fell down, spitting up blood as I stumbled back up. Ferid stood back up, fixing his hair, his face healing from the multiple cuts I gave him. Crowley sighed, shaking his head.

"Are you finally calm, now?"

I grunted, quickly drawing my gun.

"Wait—"

I squeezed the trigger, and while a shot did go off, I squeezed the gun so hard it crumpled in my hand. The shot missed, whizzing past both their heads. I was so mad, I kept squeezing the gun until the entire thing broke out of my hands. I looked at the crumpled butt and trigger of the gun still in my hand.

"...GOD...DAMMIT!"

I spun around and chucked the gun to high heaven, the gun (or, whatever was left of it) landing nearly a couple blocks away from me. It landed with a "clink", silence falling over the city.

I fell to my knees. All hope was lost. I felt powerless. I stared in empty silence out towards the road.

Ferid and Crowley stepped over to me, squatting down. Crowley placed a hand on my shoulder, shaking me a bit.

"You'll get used to it,"Ferid chuckled dryly. "Right, Crowley-kun?"

"Err...right."

"So, you now have one more shot in life. You're welcome!"

I scoffed. "...one more chance? I'm a vampire, Ferid. You fucked me."

"What? I thought you didn't want to die?"

"I didn't want to die, because I thought I would go to Hell! When I did die, I was in darkness, but then it was Heaven. I was SO CLOSE! And, you fucked me. Perfect."

"Well,"Crowley said. "Look on the bright side."

I waited for Crowley to say something. I turned my gaze to him, Ferid waiting as well. Crowley only gave me a blank look, rubbing his chin as he thought of an answer.

"...yeah?"

"Uh...I got nothing,"Crowley nervously smiled.

"Urgh."

Ferid intervened, also placing his hand on my shoulder. "The bright side is that YOU are alive and WE three gentlemen are still a merry band of friends ready to—"

"No. Just you two."

"Eh?"

I stood up, wiping the blood off my hands on my pants. "We made a deal, Ferid. I delivered your damn file. Now, you send me back home."

"Oh, right! I did say that, but maybe—"

"No. You're taking me home, and I'm staying put."

"Thai—"

"A deal is a deal. Take me home, now."

Ferid crossed his arms, a slight grin forming on his pale lips. "And, what if I say 'no.'"

"Then, I'll pay a visit to the Queen and tell her what's really going down.

"HUH!? No, you won't~!"

"YEAH! I will. Take me home, and I'll stay silent. You owe me that much."

* * *

Ferid wasn't joking when he said he had a plane set for California. Apparently, one of the four Fourth Progenitors resides in what used to be the Continental United States, claiming it, Canada, and Mexico as hers. The plane, however, wasn't in Kanagawa, but back in the Vampire City. I was supposed to be along the Manifesto as a "free human," something completely unheard of in Vampiric Society for the past four years. Now, I was just another passenger.

I waited quietly in the underground airfield, sitting quietly on a crate as I watched the plane being loaded. In just an hour, I would finally get to go home, but I knew I wasn't free of the trouble I found myself in. I knew it would only be a matter of time until I get sucked back into this mess. Still, I can at least try to make myself disappear.

Crowley sat down next to me, handing me my flask. I sighed deeply, taking it. Already, I felt a pained thirst I tried holding down. I opened it, the once disgusting smell of blood now causing me to groan in hunger.

"You have to drink,"Crowley said.

I shook my head in disbelief. "No cure, huh?"

"No."

In an instant, I drew my Ruger at Crowley, the vampire unfazed. "You better not be lying to me, Crowley. I may not be able to control the strength I have now, but I can still kill you with one shot."

"I'm not. Believe me."

"Hmph."

With my gun and eyes still trained on him, I raised the flask to my lips, eagerly drinking the entire volume of blood down until the last drop. The taste was morbidly satisfying, my tongue licking my lips. My throat uttered a deep, guttural growl of satisfaction. Crowley smiled, patting me on the head. I holstered my pistol.

"Well, this is it."

"I guess, but you won't really be gone, right?"Crowley asked.

"Pfft. I'ma do my best to hide. If I'm gonna be walking the earth all immortal-like, I'ma at least do it without you guys."

"Even me?"

"Last night didn't mean anything."

"Hey, you were the one who wanted to do it. You definitely sounded like you enjoyed it."

"Yeah...I did like it. Man, I got a huge scare with Haru afterwards."

"Really? Haru? He's dead. There's no such things as—"

"Ghosts, I know, but it was him. We saw each other when I died, and he tried saving me until you two idjits saw it fit to turn me. You really want me alive this bad?"

"Ferid does. I'm just an innocent bystander."

"Sure you are."

"Oh, and you'll need to wear this."

Crowley tossed me a bundle of clothes. I rolled my eyes, knowing exactly what he was giving me.

"How exactly am I supposed to disappear when I'm wearing this? This!? Thigh-high boots and white cowls?"

"You're a vampire now. At least wear the uniform."

"Well, why can't I wear something like what you're wearing? Maybe something in darker colors and no capes."

"Well, maybe if you stuck around, but where you're going, it doesn't matter. Ferid knows the Fourth Progenitor enough to call in a favor. You'll be having your vacation after all, Thai-kun."

"Uh, no. You mean, 'retirement.' I am still technically a retired gunslinger."

"Sure. Retired until Ferid and I find you when we need you."

"You're still hell bent on that fanatical idea of you finding me in the entirety of North America. Who knows, Crowley? Maybe I'll ride out to Tombstone. Maybe I'll hide out in the forests near Missouri River. How easy do you really think it'll be to find me."

Crowley shrugged. "It can be done."

I guffawed. Crowley was really tied to this idea that he can find me wherever and whenever. So, I thought of something very daring, yet guaranteed to be in my favor.

I pulled out my deck of cards, taking them out of the box.

"What are you doing?"

"Well,"I smiled. "Let's make us a wager. I find it incredibly hard to believe that you'll find me, but, obviously you're still convinced, so I propose I should show you how incredibly hard it would be to find me." I fanned the deck out towards him. "If you can pick out of this 52 card deck the Ace of Diamonds, I'll stay in one spot of the map. Probably a state's-wide distance, who knows?"

Crowley's eyebrow raised. "Really?" He didn't hesitate to run his finger over the edge of the cards, finally choosing one a little to the left of the center.

"It's a near two percent chance you'll actually find the card, so, no—what the—!?"

Crowley held out a card to my face. I didn't know whether to scream, laugh, or shoot him. My face scrunched up in absolute blasphemy as I stared right back at the Ace of Diamonds.

"Huh? Well, would you look at that?"Crowley sarcastically said, placing the card back in his deck. "So, Thai, you're gonna have to stay in one place."

"(Are you kidding me?) Urgh...fine, dammit!"

I angrily closed the deck, stuffing it back into its box and into my jacket pocket. I glared at Crowley, chewing just under my lip.

"...Arizona. It's where the Navajos were, and I much like their culture."

"If I remember from those movies you always watch, that's a lot of sun. You know what that can do to you, right?"

"Exactly! I don't know about you, Crowley, but that high sun and miles of desert are good to deter vampires—"

"Like you. Horrible choice, huh?"

"Pfft. Then how 'bout Washington D.C.? Or, is that where the Fourth Progenitor is sitting at?"

"No, I think she's up in Canada."

"Well, next time you see me, it'll probably be at the ol' White House. President Karsevar has a nice ring to it."

"You can't be a President if you don't have followers."

"Don't shoot down my dreams, man. You already turned me..."

A vampire soon approached us, bowing to us with one hand over his chest.

"The plane's ready to leave. Are you coming or not?"

"...you give me that shit tone again, son, I'm gonna shoot you sideways and down to hell. Ya' hear?"

"You—?!"

"I would listen to him,"Crowley interrupted. "He's stronger than he looks."

The vampire and I both eyed each other, the vampire soon walking off. I shook my head, standing up with the bundle of clothes under my arm.

"If you said that four days ago, you would be ripped limb from limb,"Crowley said.

"Yeah, well, I ain't that person no more. Not anymore."

Crowley stood up, the two of us facing each other.

"Till we meet again, right?"I smirked.

"You better be in the White House, like you said you would."

"Hah! We'll be having a drink in the Oval Office."

"Oh, one more thing. You can only drink blood, you know that, right?"

"Yeah...I know."

"So, till—"

I cut Crowley's sentence short, grabbing his lapel and pulling him towards me. In a hesitant moment, I placed a kiss on his cold cheek, quickly pushing him back just as quick. Crowley placed a hand over the cheek I kissed, myself giving him a smirk as I grabbed the duffel bag of guns next to me.

"Tell Ferid I said, 'Fuck you.' Goodbye, Crowley. Let's hope we don't meet again, for my sake."

"Hmph. I will come for you one day. Until we meet again."

"Yeah...and I'll be waiting."

I started to walk off towards the plane, not caring to look back at Crowley. With the bundle of clothes under my arm and with the same hand holding onto the duffel bag, I took out the photo of me and Haru out of my jacket pocket. I looked down on it, blood stained over my face. My thumb ran over Haru's face, a feeling of guilt coming over me again. Still, even though he witnessed me become this monster, he would want me to go on.

I lied to Crowley. I told him I was going to go home and I still intend on doing so. I will be free of this madness and no one, not even Crowley, Ferid, or anyone else will stop me.

I stepped into the cargo hold of the plane, a few vampires already inside. I glared at each and every one of them, what used to be fear and anxiety now turned to nothing but disgust.

"So, you're the new guy?"said one of them, a familiar purple-haired vampire. "The gunslinger turned vampire."

"Yeah."

"You're the one who's getting to leave."

"Yep. Are you gonna stop me?"

"No."

"Good."

Soon, the plane was up in the air. I was buckled inside my seat, far enough away from the other vampires. Only a day's trip left, and then it's freedom.

"Country road...take me home."


End file.
